PR 2944
D 685
11456
Donnelly, Ignatius .
The cipher in the plays,
the tombstone.
and on
DATE DUE
PRINTED IN CANADA
BY
RYERSON PRESS
THE CIPHER
In the Plays, and on the Tombstone;
BY
IGNATIUS DONNELLY
Author of
ATLANTIS," " RAGNAROK," ''THE GREAT CRYPTOGRAM,
"CESAR'S COLUMN," "THE GOLDEN BOTTLE," ETC.
" Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare
To diGG T-E Dust Enclo-Ased HE. Re.
T
Blese be T-E Man Y spares T-Es Stones
And curst be He Y moves my Bones."
"Everything is subtile till it be conceived."
Bacon's Promus.
" Shakespeare's life is a fine mystery. I tremble
every day lest something should turn up."
CHARLES DICKENS.
LONDON
SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON & COMPANY
Limited
St. gltmstan's 2jouse
FETTER LANE, FLEET STREET, E.G.
'HE
1900
COLLE«
THE UBRAH
ST. lEiOMPS COUEKE
TO MY DEAR WIFE,
MARION,
THIS BOOK IS MOST AFFECTIONATELY
DEDICATED.
PREFACE.
I almost feel as if I should apologize for presenting
this book to the public.
There are figures enough in it to "make mad the guilty
and appal the free." I fear I shall have to say, to the
average reader, as Worcester said to Hotspur:
"You apprehend a world of figures here,
But not the form of what you should attend."
To many this work will appear as tempting as a table
of logarithms; and they will refuse to pursue the riddle
farther than the opening pages. They will say to them-
selves : — it is a herring, — full of bones.
I know how delightful it is to read a fascinating novel —
to float in a golden gondola, down the stream of delicious
romance, over the ripples of incident, amid the roseate
hues of poetry ; and to ask one to turn from this to 753+
167+29:= "the/' etc., is asking a great deal.
And yet through this thorny and stony path, with its
brambles and thistles, we advance into a new world, —
more glorious than all the novels ever written.
The key may be old and rusty and complex; but if it
opens Aladdin's treasure cavern, from whose spoils one
can purchase all the delights of the world, who will com-
plain if he has to soil his fingers by inserting that key in
the lock?
The stores of history, biography, poetry and philoso-
phy, buried by Francis Bacon in the thousand pages of
the Shakespeare Folio, of 1623, are, today, the greatest
treasure in the world, more precious than all the jewels of
Aladdin*
And so I beg the reader to patiently advance through
the thistles and the cockle-burrs, and help us settle the
great, and long-enduring controversy, as to whether the
immortal plays were written by the play-actor of Strat-
ford, or by the greatest intellect that ever appeared on this
theater of human action — the transcendent Francis Bacon.
I. D.
CONTENTS.
BOOK ONE.
The Cipher on the Tombstone.
Chapter. Page.
I. MR. BLACK'S ARTICLE, 9
II. WAS THERE SUCH A BI-LITERAL INSCRIPTION? - 12
III. WAS THE ORIGINAL STONE CONTEMPORARY WITH
SHAKSPERE'S DEATH? - - 15
IV. WHAT WAS THE INSCRIPTION ? 18
V. Is THERE A CIPHER IN THE INSCRIPTION ? 24
VI. FRANCIS BACON'S CIPHER, - 32
VII. SOME PECULIARITIES OF BACON'S CIPHER. - 38
VIII. THE FRAME-WORK OF THE CIPHER, - - - - 46
IX. THE WORD "SHAKE," - 48
X. THE WORD "SPEARE," - 53
XI. THE WORD "PL AYES," 56
XII. THE WORDS "THE" AND "AND," - 59
XIII. THE WORDS "ROBERT GREKNE," 62
XIV. THE WORDS "CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE," - - 66
XV. THE WORD "BACON," - 74
XVI. THE WORD "FRANCIS," - 78
XVII. THE WORD "WROTE," - 81
XVIII. SOME CONSIDERATIONS, - - 84
BOOK TWO.
The Cipher in the Sonnets.
XIX. THE SONNETS, 93
XX. A HIDDEN DEPOSIT, ------- 115
BOOK THREE.
The Phoenix and the Turtle.
Chapter. Page.
XXI. THE PHCENIX AND THE TURTLE, - ... 125
BOOK FOUR.
The Cipher in the Shakespeare Plays.
XXII. THE ROOT NUMBERS, - 139
XXIII. THE MOVEMENT OF THE CIPHER, - 150
XXIV. MARLOWE'S DEATH, - .155
XXV. THE BACON-SHAKSPERE CONTROYERSEY 300
YEARS AGO, .... 174
XXVI. WHY BACON DENIED THE AUTHORSHIP OF THE
PLAYS, - 194
XXVII. THE STORY OF SHAKSPERE, - 246
XXVIII. "FRANCIS BACON, SIR NICHOLAS BACON'S SON," 287
BOOK FIVE.
The Present Custodians of the Cipher.
XXIX. THE ROSICRUCIAN SOCIETY, - - 333
XXX. Is ROSICRUCIANISM STILL ALIVE ? - - 343
XXXI. SHAKSPERE'S GRAVE, - 361
XXXII. THE CHURCH OF ST. MICHAEL, AT ST. ALBANS, 367
THE END.
BOOK ONE.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER I.
Mr. Black's Article.
In the North American Review, for October, 1887,
there appeared an article, from the pen of Mr. Hugh
Black, of Kincardine, Ontario, entitled "Bacons Claim
and Shakespeare's 'Aye'," or "Fro, Ba Wrt Ear Ay."
In this article Mr. Black quoted from Knight's Edition
of Shakespeare's Works, the following epitaph from the
tomb-stone over Shakespeare's grave :
"Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare
To diGG T-E Dust Enclo-Ased HE.Re.
T
Blese be T-E Man Y spares T-Es Stones
T
curst be He Y moves my Bones."
It occurred to Mr. Black that there might be some rela-
tion or connection between the strange mixture of large
and small letters, in this inscription, and the bi-literal
cipher alphabet, invented by Francis Bacon, Lord Veru-
lam, in his youth, in Paris; and set forth in his work,
De Augmentis. That cipher-alphabet, as its name, bi-
literal, implies, depends upon the commingling of two sets
10 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
of different letters, whether these be "Roman and Italic/'
or simply "two other common alphabets," distinguished
by a difference in the size of the letters or their shape.
A strict application of the Baconian bi-literal cipher to
the above inscription, over Shakespeare's grave, by plac-
ing a letter a under the small letters, and a letter b under
the large letters, as directed in the De Augmentis, brought
out, as Mr. Black showed, the following symbols of the
bi-literal alphabet :
baaab aaaaa aabaa aabbb baaaa
aaaab aaaaa babba aabaa aabaa abbba
baaaa aabab baaba aaaaa babab aaaaa
baaaa aaaaa babaa aaaaa baaaa
Mr. Black says :
"Two things will be noticed that give evidence of de-
sign ; first, there are no letters left over ; second, the com-
binations are all significant, that is, they all stand for let-
ters in Bacon's bi-literal alphabet, although the number
of possible combinations is thirty-two, and the number
used in the alphabet only twenty-four. Referring to the
alphabet, the twenty-two groups are found to stand for
the following twenty-two letters:
SAEHR
BA YE
RETA
E P
XA
RAWAR"
Mr. Black proceeded to call attention to the fact that
the letters above a line which he drew, as given, spelled
Shaxpere and from the other letters he constructed the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 11
fragments of words, which gave title to his article, "Fra
Ba wrt ear ay," which form, he says, suggestive parts of
the sentence : "Francis Bacon wrote Shakespeare's Plays."
To the public mind, however, while the results ob-
tained were curious, they did not prove satisfactory.
Shakespeare was never known to write his name Shax-
pere. His own signatures give the spelling as Shakspere,
which doubtless had. the sound of Shaxpere, as is shown
by contemporary documents. Moreover it was evident
that if Bacon had inserted a claim of authorship, in cipher,
in the inscription on Shakspere's tomb-stone, he would
not have been content to put it forth in such an enigmati-
cal form as, (CFra Ba wrt ear ay." Having penetrated
through the cipher, the expert would naturally expect to
find, and would be entitled to find, a coherent and com-
plete sentence; and Mr. Black having failed to elaborate
such a sentence, his discovery was discredited ; and he did
not even receive the credit to which he was justly entitled,
as the first man, in the space of two hundred and seventy-
one years, who had perceived a relationship between Ba-
con's cipher and the inscription on Shakspere's tomb-
stone at Stratford.
12 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER II.
Was there such a bi-literal inscription?
When the article, written by Mr. Black, appeared in
The North American Revieiv, it was at once met by the
objection, that in the inscription upon the stone, which
now rests over Shakspere's grave, there was no such
commingling of large and small letters, as stated in Mr.
Black's paper ; and hence there was no cipher in it.
This is true. The inscription on the present grave-
stone is as follows:
"GOOD FREND FOR JESVS SAKE FORBEARE,
TO DIGG THE DVST ENCLOASED HEARE!
BLESE BE Y MAN Y SPARES THES STONES,
T
AND CVRST BE HE Y MOVES MY BONES."
*
There is, of course, no possibility of applying Lord
Bacon's bi-literal cipher to this stone, for all the letters
are of the same size and character; and the bi-literal
cipher, as its name indicates, depends upon a mixture of
two different kinds of letters.
But these critics did not seem to know that the stone
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 13
now over the grave is not the stone placed there at the
time of Shakspere's death.
This is clearly established by that high authority, J. O.
Halliwell-Phillips, in his "Outlines of the Life of Shakes-
peare," p. 173. He says :
"The honors of repose, which have thus far been con-
ceded to the poet's remains, have not been extended to
the tomb-stone. The latter had, by the middle of the last
century, sunk below the level of the floor, and, about fifty
years ago, had become so much decayed as to suggest a
vandalic order for its removal, and in its stead, to place a
new slab, one which marks certainly the locality of Shake-
speare's grave, and continues the record of the farewell
lines, but indicates nothing more. The original mem-
orial has wandered from its allotted station no one can
tell whither, — a sacrifice to the insane worship of pro-
saic neatness, that mischievous demon whose votaries
have practically destroyed so many of the priceless relics
of ancient England and her gifted sons."
It being established, therefore, that the present stone is
not the one originally placed over the grave, the question
arises, — did the latter contain such a mixture of small
and large letters, as is represented in Mr. Black's article?
There can be no doubt upon that point.
In Edmond Malone's edition of "The Plays and Poems
of William Shakspere/'' published after his death, in
1821, the author says (Vol. n, p. 506) :
"On his grave stone, underneath, is the following in-
scription, expressed, as Mr: Steevens observes, in an un-
couth mixture of small and capital letters."
This is conclusive as to the bi-literal character of the
original inscription. We not only have the statement
14 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
of Mr. Steevens that the inscription contains "an uncouth
mixture of small and capital letters," but we have the
fact further confirmed by the observation of Mr. Malone.
And I need scarcely add that no commentators of Shakes-
peare, of their period, stood higher in public esteem, for
pains-taking accuracy than Malone and Steevens.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 15
CHAPTER III.
Was the Original Stone Contemporary With Shakspere's
Death?
There is no reason to doubt that the original grave-
stone, with the bi-literal inscription, dated back to the
time of Shakspere's death and burial.
Charles Knight, in his Biography of Shakspere, page
542, quotes the testimony of a witness who writes forty
years after Shakspere's death, showing that the stone,
with its inscription, was in existence at that time. He
says :
"In a plate to Dugdale's "Antiquities of Warwickshire,"
first published in 1656, we have a representation of Shaks-
pere's tomb, with the following: 'Neare the wall where
this monument is erected lyeth a plain free-stone, under-
neath which his body is buried, with this epitaph,
'Good frend,' " etc.
Knight also quotes the testimony of a gentleman named
Dowdall, who writes from Warwickshire in 1693. After
describing the monument, on the side of the church,
erected to the memory of Shakspere, and giving the in-
scription upon the face of it, Mr. Dowdall says :
16 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
"Near the wall where this monument is erected lies the
plain free-stone, underneath which his body is buried,
with this epitaph, made by himself a little before his
death."
He then gives the epitaph, and subsequently adds :
"Not one for fear of the curse above-said dare touch
his grave-stone, though his wife and daughters did earn-
estly desire to be laid in the same grave with him."
Mrs. Shakspere died in 1623, seven years after the
death of her husband. It thus apppears, according to the
tradition received by Mr. Dowdall, on his visit to Strat-
ford, that not only was it believed that Shakspere him-
self wrote the epitaph ; but that the inscribed stone was
in existence seven years after his death, and that the
curse was sufficient to prevent Mrs. Shakespere from be-
ing buried in the same grave with her husband.
It must be remembered that when "Dugdale's Antiqui-
ties of Warwickshire" was published, in 1656, Shaks-
pere's daughter, Susanna, had been dead but seven years ;
and his second daughter, Judith, was still living. And
when Dowdall repeated the tradition, that Shakspere had
written the verses on the grave-stone, Shakspere's grand-
daughter, Elizabeth Barnard, had been dead only twenty-
three years.
Indeed, it has never been doubted that the grave-stone
dated back to the time of Shakspere's burial ; and the
fact that Shakspere wrote the epitaph inscribed upon it
has never been questioned until late years. Dowdall
states that the authority for his statements was the clerk
of the church ; he says :
"The clarke that shew'd me this church is above 80
years old"
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 17
He must have been, therefore, three years old when
Shakspere died : and the information he gave Dowdall
was consequently rather the testimony of a contemporary
than the repetition of a vague tradition.
Halli well-Phillips, (page 172, of The Outlines), after
quoting the words of the inscription, ("Good Friend,"
etc.), refers to them as "lines which a well supported
tradition assigns to the pen of Shakspere himself."
18 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER IV.
What Was the Inscription?
Having, as I trust, established that there was a grave-
stone anterior to the present one; that it dated back
to the time of Shakspere's burial; that the inscription
upon it was believed to have been written by Shakspere
himself; and that it was bi-literal in its character, and
"an uncouth mixture of large and small letters;'* let
us next ascertain what was the precise form of the
inscription, for upon that the cipher, if there is one, must
depend.
And here again we are fortunate enough to have the
testimony of those reliable antiquarians, and commenta-
tors on Shakspere, Edmond Malone and George Steev-
ens.
Both having agreed, as they tell us, that the inscrip-
tion contained an "uncouth mixture of large and small
letters," it followed, as a matter of course, that their at-
tention, being thus attracted to that fact, they would
give the details of that admixture with reasonable ac-
curacy. And that they had every opportunity to exam-
ine the original stone, long before it was removed, there
can be no doubt. George Steevens was born at Stepney,
May loth, 1736, — one hundred and twenty years after
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 19
Shakspere's death — and Edmond Malone was born at
Dublin five years later. Steevens published part of the
Shakspere plays in 1/66, and died in 1800. Malone began
his study of the plays in 1778; published his Supplement
to Johnson and Steevens' edition of Shakespeare in 1780;
and died in 1812.
I quote their version of the bi-literal inscription from
editions published prior to the removal of the original
stone.
Malone gives it, in the edition of 1821, already referred
to, (vol. ii, p. 506), as follows:
"Good Frend for lesus SAKE forbeare
To digg T-E Dust KncloAsed HE.Re.
T
Blese be T-E Man Y spares T-Es Stones
T
And curst be He Y moves my bones."
Mr. Steevens, in the edition, in nine volumes, pub-
lished in 1811, by J. Nichols and Son, (the first edition
of the same work was in 1773,) in volume I, p. xix,
gives precisely the same arrangement of the words as to
the large and small letters : — the only difference is that
he spells the second word "Friend/' instead of "Frend."
There is no doubt that on the original stone it was
"Frend." One would more naturally err by spelling a
word correctly where it was spelled incorrectly, than he
would fall into the opposite error, of misspelling a word
already properly spelled.
We turn to Charles Knight's Biography of Shakspere,
(he so spells the name, — copying it from the poet's sig-
20 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
natures), and we find the inscription (page 542), given
as follows :
"Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbea'e
To diGG T-E Dust Enclo-Ased HERe
T
Blese be T-E Man Y spares T-Es Stones
T
And curst be He Y moves my bones."
Knight was born in 1791, and his Biography of Shaks-
pere was first published in 1842, shortly after the original
grave-stone had been removed ; but as he had been en-
gaged for many years in collecting materials for that
work, there is no doubt that his version of the inscription
was copied, by himself directly from the original stone.
It will be observed that he gives the word "friend" in
the same form that Malone did, — "Frend." It will be
seen hereafter that this spelling is necessary to the cipher-
sentence.
He differs, however, in some particulars, from both
Steevens and Malone.
In the first place, they give the word "digg" in the
second line as composed of capitals of two sizes, thus
"diGG:" while Knight prints it in letters of the same
size throughout, thus : — "digg." In the version of Ma-
lone and Steevens there are in the inscription letters of
three different sizes : ( I ) the body of the text repre-
sents one size; (2) the two letters "GG," in "digg," a
second size; (3) while the initial letters of words like
"Jesus," "EncloAsed," etc., and the words "SAKE" and
the first three letters of "HERe," and the compound
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 21
T
symbols "T-E" and "Y," appear in still larger-sized
letters.
Knight failed to perceive that the letters "GG" in
"digg," were larger than the letters composing the body
of the inscription ; but as they were not as large as the
"T-E's," etc., he set them down as belonging to the
same size as the bulk of the inscription. He, of course,
had no suspicion that there was such a thing as a cipher
in the inscription : — if he had he would have noticed the
fact that while the two "GG's" were smaller than the
largest letters, they were larger than the smallest. But
I think the reader will agree with me that Malone and
Steevens could not have given these two "GG's" as
larger than the body of the text, if they had not been so.
To do this they would have had to invent something;
while Knight simply overlooked something. To invent
implies design, a purpose ; — none of these copyists of the
inscription suspected a cipher; — therefore they had no
reason to misrepresent it. But to fail to see or note a
difference between three sizes of letters is perfectly com-
patible with intentional accuracy. And the reader will
find that this distinction, this rendering of the two GG's,
in "digg," as larger letters, is necessary to the working
out of the cipher. And it was probably because Mr.
Black followed Knight, instead of the older copyists, that
he failed to elaborate the cipher sentence contained in
the inscription.
But there is another particular wherein Knight's copy
differs from that of Malone or Steevens. All three agree
that the last word of the second line stood upon the origi-
nal grave-stone thus:
22 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
"H E Re."
But Knight inserts a period between "H E" and "Re,"
thus:
"HE. Re.";
and he also places another period after the "Re," so that
the word stands :
"H E. Re."
The presence of a period in the middle of a word must
have seemed to Steevens and Malone so extraordinary, so
outre, so unheard-of, that they concluded it was a defect
in the stone, or an accident caused by the ignorance of
the stone-mason, and therefore did not copy it. They
recognized "the uncouth mixture of large and small let-
ters," but they could not believe that the writer of any
inscription could purposely divide the word here into "he"
and "re" separated by a period. But we shall see here-
after that the insertion of this period was not only an
intentional part of the original inscription, but that it
was necessary to the working out of the cryptic message
contained in it.
It will be observed that the stone-mason of Stratford,
when he carved the inscription on the present grave-
stone, did not adhere to the original, either in the form or
the arrangement of the letters. He, however, spelled
friend in the first line "FREND," thereby confirming
the version of Steevens and Malone in that particular.
And when he came to the word "H E. Re/' he either ob-
served the period, or noticed a widening or separation
between the letters E and R, and supposing that some-
thing was missing, he inserted an A in the place of the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 23
period, and carved the word thus, "HE ARE." He also
changed the form of the compound letter T — E, stand-
ing for "the" into T — IE; and when he came to "T — E
E
Man," in the third line, he altered it into "Y MAN."
He also punctuated it differently from the original, the
first punctuation being an important matter to the work-
ing out of the cipher, as will be seen hereafter. In Steev-
ens' and Malone's copies there are no punctuation marks,
and in Knight's none but a period at the end of the sec-
ond line, and another at the end of the fourth line, besides
that mysterious period in the middle of the word
"HE.Re."
Knight also differs from Malone in Quitting the dash
between "o" and "A" in "encloased;" which Malone
gives, as I have shown, thus : "Enclo— Ased." We shall
see hereafter that that dash is an important detail.
24 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER V.
Is There a Cipher in the Inscription?
Having demonstrated (i) that there was a bi-literal
inscription on the original grave-stone; (2) that it dated
back to the time of Shakspere's burial; (3) that tradi-
tion ascribed it to Shakspere himself ; and having shown
(4) what the inscription actually was ; we come now to
another inquiry: (5) are there, any evidences that the
original bi-literial epitaph contained a cipher?
It is, in itself, a singular inscription. It does not con-
tain the poet's name, or any reference to him. Knight
says, (Biography, p. 542) :
"It is very remarkable, we think, that this plain free-
stone does not bear the name of Shakspere — has nothing
to establish the fact that the stone originally belonged
to the grave. We apprehend that during the period that
elapsed between his death and the setting-up of the
monument, a stone was temporarily placed over the
grave ; and that the warning not to touch the bones was
the stone-mason's invention, to secure their reverence
till a fitting monument should be prepared, if the stone
were not ready in his yard to serve for any other grave."
It would, however, appear reasonable to suppose that,
if anv considerable interval of time elapsed between
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 25
Shakspere's burial and the erection of his monument,
any stone placed over his grave, to identify it, would, at
least, have contained his name. A grave-stone without
a name would be a very insufficient means to identify the
mortal remains of any one.
No stone of a similar character, contemporaneous with
or anterior to the time of Shakspere, has ever been found.
Halliwell-Phillips refers to one mentioned in Stowe's
Survey of London, with the same verses, dated eighty-
four years after Shakspere's death, to wit, in 1700 (see
Outlines, page 306) ; and he called upon the curious in
such matters to make inquiry and ascertain and report to
him whether any stone, with the same inscription, prior
to, or contemporary with Shakspere, had been found. No
such information, so far as I am informed, was ever
forthcoming; and this is a sufficient answer to Knight's
suggestion that the stone-mason had the stone ready for
any grave.
Neither is it probable that any village stone-mason
composed the lines of the epitaph, for although it falls
far below the genius of the author of Hamlet or Lear,
it is nevertheless complete, as a metrical composition,
in rhythm and rhyme, and it expresses what it has to
say tersely and strongly. Any one who has examined
the ancient epitaphs in English country church-yards
will not be ready to accept the theory that the stone-
mason of Stratford was the author of these lines.
Neither is any such belief consonant with the traditions
of Stratford, that the lines were written by Shakspere
himself; and that he wrote them for his tombstone, be-
cause he feared that his bones might be taken up, at some
future time, and thrown into the dreadful charnal house,
26 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
of which he had a great horror. And if the curse had been
the work of the stone-mason, would its terrors have pre-
vented the wife and daughters of Shakspere from be-
ing buried in the same grave with him?
Now let us consider whether the inscription, as it stood
on the original grave-stone, gave any evidences of con-
taining a cipher.
In the first place, I do not think any other such extra-
ordinary combination of large and small capitals can be
found anywhere else in the world.
Take those two words, in the first line :
"Jesus SAKE."
If this had been reversed, — if it had been :
"JESUS sake,"
we could suppose that the stone-cutter intended to ex-
press, in this way, his reverence for the sacred name of
our Lord. But why should he carve the name of the
Saviour in small letters and the unimportant word "sake"
in large letters? Surely the emphasis is on "Jesus," not
on "sake."
Then observe that word
"Enclo— Ased."
Can any one explain why a large capital letter should
be thrust into the middle of such a word? Is there any
parallel for it in the world?
And why insert not only the large letter A in the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 27
midst of the word "encloased/' but also divide the word
into two parts by placing a dash before the A ?
Take also the next word : —
"HE.Re."
If the sculptor had made it all large capitals, like the
word "SAKE," we might have supposed he had a fancy
for such freaks. But why drop from three large letters
to a small one? And why, above all, insert a period in
the middle of the word?
The mere presence of large and small letters would not,
of itself, indicate the presence of Lord Bacon's bi-littral
cipher. Something more is needed . The larger letters
must be near enough together to constitute, with the
smaller ones, the necessary groups of five letters each,
significant of the letters of the bi-literal alphabet:
For instance, let us take the English inscription upon
the monument to Shakspere, which stands against the
wall of the church, and near the grave-stone. I copy
the first three lines :
"Stay, passenger, why goest thou by so fast,
Read, if thou canst whom envious death hath plast
Within this monument, Shakspeare, with whom," etc.
If now we place under these letters the as and b's,
as directed by Lord Bacon, — the a's under the small let-
ters, and the b's under the large ones, — the first line will
give us :
baaaa aaaaa aaaaa aaaaa aaaaa aaaaa aaa
28 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
If we. turn to the bi-literal alphabet this will be found
to signify :
R A A A A A
The second line gives us :
R A A A A A A A
The third line :
R A A C A A A
Of course it is impossible to apply the bi-literal cipher
to an inscription which in three lines gives us but three
letters of the alphabet, — R A and C. No sentence can be
spelled out of such limited elements.
But when we turn from the monument to the inscrip-
tion on the grave-stone, we obtain very different results.
Let us take the first line :
''Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare
To diGG," etc.
Now if we divide these letters into groups of five each
and place a b under each large letter and an a under
each small letter, as Lord Bacon directs, in the De Aug-
mentis, we have this result :
Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare
baaa baaaa aaa baaaa bbbb aaaaaaaa
To diGG
ba aabb
Now let the reader turn to Lord Bacon's bi-literal
cipher, and he will find that every one of these groups of
five represents a letter of his alphabet :
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 29
baaab
is
S.
aaaaa
is
A.
aabaa
is
E.
aabbb
is
H.
baaaa
is
R.
aaaab
is
B.
And that there is design in the arrangement of these
large and small letters will be evident when we consider
what would have been the result if the stone-cutter, to
show his religious feeling, had placed the name of Jesus
in large capitals. The line would then have stood :
Good Frend for JESUS SAKE forbeare
baaa baaaa aaa bbbbb bbbb aaaa
We turn to Lord Bacon's bi-literal alphabet, and we
find that, as before, the first group gives us S, and the
second A ; but the third group — aabbb — gives us the let-
ter H, while the fourth group is, — bbbbb; and there is
no such symbol in Lord Bacon's alphabet — it stands for
nothing !
Again: Suppose that the word "friend" had been
spelled correctly, according to the usage of that day, in-
stead of incorrectly, as we have it in the original inscrip-
tion; and suppose there was not that "uncouth mixture
of small and capital letters" in that first line, and that
the arrangement of the text was the same as in the in-
scription on the monument, then the line would have
stood :
Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare.
And this, divided into groups of five each, would
give us:
30 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
Good friend for Jesus sake for beare
baaa aaaaaa aaa baaaa aaaa aaa aaaaa
And these, according to Bacon's alphabet, would be
R A C AAA
And the result would be that the line, instead of giv-
ing us as before, in six groups, or thirty letters, six dif-
ferent letters of the bi-literal alphabet, (S, A, E, H, R, B)
would only give us three : R, A, C.
The second line, correctly carved, would have given us
another R and four A's.
In fact, the whole inscription, but for the "uncouth
mixture of small and capital letters," would yield us alto-
gether three R's, two C's and seventeen A's. I need not
say that it would be impossible to construct any cipher
sentence from these materials.
. If now we find that the "uncouth mixture of small
and capital letters'' was not only necessary to the forma-
tion of a cipher, but that any addition to the number of
the capital letters would have produced combinations of
letters for which there is no equivalent in Lord Bacon's
bi-literal alphabet, may we not reasonably conclude that
this "uncouth mixture" has a method .in k ; that it evi-
dences design, and that it was put there to contain Lord
Bacon's cipher alphabet?
If we find the timbers of a building cut and mortised,
lying upon the ground, and if one shows us a plan or
draft by which they are to be put together; and each
piece of the frame has upon it the very tenons necessary
to construct the building, in accordance with the design,
no one can fail to see that there was some necessary con-
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 31
nection between the architect who drew that plan and
the carpenter who prepared those timbers. And in the
same way, when we find that the precise arrangement of
large and small letters, found on Shakspere's grave-stone,
is necessary to the working out of Lord Bacon^s bi-literal
cipher ; and that any change in the arrangement of those
letters would destroy the possibility of applying the cipher
to them, then we must conclude that there is a relation-
ship, or connection, between the grave-stone in the Strat-
ford church and the bi-literal cipher given in Bacon's
De Augmentis.
32 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER VI.
Francis Bacon's Cipher.
Presuming that the reader is satisfied that the bi-literal
inscription on the grave-stone dates back to the time
of Shakspere's burial; that it is unique; and that its
characteristics are so unusual and extraordinary as to
render it exceedingly probable that there is a cipher in
it, of the kind described in Bacon's "De Augmentis" we
will proceed to consider, in more detail, what is the na-
ture of Bacon's cipher.
In the Sixth Book of the "De Augmentis" Bacon, after
discussing Poetry, in which he describes it as "a luxuri-
ant plant, that comes of the lust of the earth, without
any formal seed ; wherefore it spreads everywhere and is
scattered far and wide," he proceeds, suggestively, to
speak of Ciphers. He says: (Vol. IX, p. 115, edition of
Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Boston, 1882.)
"As for Writing, it is performed either by the com-
mon alphabet (which is used by everybody) or by a
secret and private one, agreed upon by particular per-
sons, which they call ciphers. * * *
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 33
"Let us proceed then to Ciphers. Of these there are
many kinds; simple ciphers; ciphers mixed with non-
significant characters; ciphers containing two different
letters in one character; wheel ciphers; key ciphers;
word ciphers ; and the like. But the virtues required of
them are three : that they be easy and not laborious to
write -, that they be safe, and impossible to be deciphered ;
and lastly that they be, if possible, such as not to raise
suspicion. For if letters fall into the hands of those
who have power either over the writers or over those to
whom they are addressed, although the cipher itself may
be safe and impossible to decipher, yet the matter comes
under examination and question ; unless the cipher be
such as either to raise no suspicion or to elude inquiry.
Now for this elusion of inquiry, there is a new and use-
ful contrivance for it, which, as I have it by me, why
should I not set it down among the desiderata, instead
of propounding the thing itself."
Observe how cunningly Bacon tries to give a reason
for introducing, into a philosophical work, an essay on
ciphers, and for presenting a particular kind of cipher.
He "has it by him ;"— yes,— in the old church at Strat-
ford, over a certain famous grave. It is a "useful con-
trivance," that has "eluded inquiry" for nigh onto three
hundred years !
"It is this: Let a man have two alphabets, one of
true letters, the other of non-significants; and let him
infold in them two letters at once ; one carrying the se-
cret, the other such a letter as the writer would have been
34 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
likely to send, and yet without anything dangerous.
Then if any one be strictly examined as to the cipher, let
him offer the alphabet of non-significants for the true
letters, and the alphabet of true letters for non-signifi-
cants. Then the examiner will fall upon the exterior
letter; which finding probable, he will "not suspect any-
thing of another letter within/'
That is to say, finding the "Good Friend for Jesus
sake," etc., on the tomb-stone, he will not look for a
cipher declaration within it.
"But for avoiding suspicion altogether, I will add an-
other contrivance, which I devised myself when I was at
Paris in my early youth, and which I still think worthy
preservation."
How many excuses have we for presenting the bi-literal
cipher !
"For it has the perfection of a cipher, which is to make
anything signify anything; subject however to this con-
dition, that the infolding writing shall contain at least
five times as many letters as the writing infolded : no
other condition or restriction is required. The way to do
it is this : First, let all the letters of the alphabet be re-
solved into transpositions of two letters only. For the
transposition of two letters through five places will yield
thirty-two differences: much more twenty- four, which
is the number of letters in our alphabet. Here is an ex-
ample of such an alphabet.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 35
Example of an Alphabet in two letters.
A B CD E F
aaaaa aaaab aaaba aaabb aabaa aabab
G H I K L M
aabba aabbb abaaa abaab ababa ababb
NO P Q R S
abbaa abbab abbba abbbb baaaa baaab
TV W X Y Z
baaba baabb babaa babab babba babbb
"Nor is it a slight thing which is thus, by the way,
effected. For hence we see how thoughts may be com-
municated at any distance of place by means of any ob-
jects perceptible either to the eye or ear, provided only
that those objects are capable of two differences, as by
bells, trumpets, torches, gunshots and the like."
This is really the principle of the present telegraphic
alphabet, which is a combination of dots and dashes.
"But to proceed with our business : when you prepare
to write, you must reduce the interior epistle to this bi-
literal alphabet. Let the interior epistle be,
Fly.
Example of Reduction.
FLY
aabab ababa babba
"Have by you, at the same time, another alphabet in
two forms; I mean one in which each of the Letters of
the common alphabet, both capital and small, is exhib-
ited in two different forms ; — any forms that you find
convenient.
36 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
Example of an Alphabet in tivo Forms.
a
b
a
b
a
b
a
b
a
n
a
b
A
A
a
a
B
B
b
b
C
C
c
c
D
D
d
d
H
E
e
e
F
F
i
r
G
G
g
1
H
H
h
h
I
I
i
i
K
K
k
h
L
L
1
I
M
M
m
m
N
JV
n
n
O
0
0
0
P
P
p
P
Q
Q
q
q
K
R
r
r
S
S
s
s
T
T
t
t
U
U
u
u
V
v
W
W
W
w
X
X
X
X
Y
r
y
y
Z
Z
Z
-K
"Then take your interior epistle, reduced to the bi-
literal shape, and adapt to it, letter by letter, your ex-
terior epistle, in the bi-form character; and then write
it out. Let the exterior epistle be :
Do not go till I come.
Example oi Adaptation.
FLY
aa bab. ab aba.b a bba.
Do not go till I come.
The reader will note the extreme subtlety of all this.
The differences in the letters of the two fonts of type
are so minute as to be almost microscopical.
Mr. Black, in his North American article, quotes, I pre-
sume, from a different edition of the "De Angmentis."
"Let there be also at hand two other common alpha-
bets, as for example, Roman and Italic. All the letters
of the Roman are read or deciphered, by translating
them into the letter A only. And all the letters of the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 37
Italic alphabet are to be read by translating them into
the letter B only. Now adjuster fit any external double
faced writing, letter by letter, to the internal writing,
first made bi-literate ; and afterwards write it down for
the letter or epistle to be sent/'
It would be worth while inquiring why two editions
of the De Augmcntis should differ in this important par-
ticular. For it will be seen that a combination of Ro-
man and Italic letters, in the external sentence, approxi-
mates much more closely to the "uncouth mixture of
large and small letters/' found in the grave-stone inscrip-
tion, than a commingling of two fonts of type, between
which there are only minute differences.
But to show that the Bacon cipher can be used equally
well with large and small letters, we have only to apply
it to the example given, in the "De Augmentis." Take
the same sentence : "Do not go till I come," and print
it like the grave-stone inscription, in large and small let-
ters, and place an a under the small letters and a b under
the large letters, and we have this result :
do NoT gO til I cOMe
aa bab ab aba b abba
FLY
Of course this would be. in any printed text, a much
more "uncouth mixture" than it would be upon a rude
stone, in a country church ; where the fault could be
naturally laid at the door of an illiterate stone-mason.
But nevertheless it is evident that the Bacon cipher, in
the "De Augmentis" is practically the same which we
have reason to believe exists on the Shakespeare grave-
stone,
38 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER VII.
'Some Peculiarities of Bacon's Cipher.
There are reasons which lead us to think that the .par-
ticular bi-literal Alphabet of the "De Augmentis" was
not made anterior to the construction of the epitaph on
the Stratford grave-stone, but that the epitaph on the
grave-stone determined the peculiarities and limitations
of the cipher.
Bacon speaks in the "De Augmentis" of forming his
cipher by the. use of "two alphabets, as for example Ro-
man and Italic." He would seem to be avoiding a too
direct reference to the tomb-stone by not referring to a
bi-literal alphabet which depended upon the difference
in the size of the letters. And yet the example he gives
us, which I have just quoted, is not one resting on Ro-
man and Italic letters. Indeed a cipher consisting of such
a mixture of Roman and Italic letters would betray itself
at once. We may italicise words, when we desire to em-
phasize them, or make them conspicuous ; but Italic let-
ters mixed with Roman would present so curious a spec-
tacle that it would cry out to all observers : — "There is
a cipher here !" Imagine, for instance, the inscription on
Shakespeare's monument printed in this fashion:
"Stay Passenger, why goest tho-u by so fast?"
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 39
Therefore the cipher in the "De Augmentis" consist-
ing of Roman and Italic letters, zvas never meant for any
practical purpose, for it would not elude inquiry but pro-
voke it.
At the same time, the cipher alphabet given, consisting
of two fonts of type, between which there are minute dif-
ferences, would be valueless for purposes of written cor-
respondence, where no type is used. And yet Bacon
speaks as if the contrivance was designed for written
correspondence ; for he says, "If letters fall into the hands
of those who have power either over the writers or over
those to whom they are addressed," etc. No one ever
heard of men carrying on a treasonable correspondence
in type; and then instructing the printers to take two
fonts of type and mix them in a given order. This would
be to proclaim their own treason on the housetop, In-
deed so difficult would it be to print in this way, from
two different fonts of type, at the same time, that we are
told that both those tables in the "De Augmentis," which
we have inserted above, showing the commingling of dif-
ferent kinds of letters, were actually carved, for the first
edition of that work, and not set up in type at all!
What then did that extraordinarily subtle man mean
by giving to the world a cipher, for written correspond-
ence, which could not be used, with the aid of type, with-
out revealing to the compositors the fact that there was
some secret behind it? Surely all these excuses for pre-
senting his bi-literal cipher, and all his explanations, and
his carved tables, must have had an object; and just as
surely that object could not be to furnish posterity a
means of communicating in cipher. For who, after that
book was published, and in the hands of thousands of
40 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
readers, would dare to adopt Bacon's bi-literal cipher, for
correspondence that might cost him his head ?
But if this bi-literal cipher was not to be used by the
cunning conspirators of King James time, might it not
refer backwards to some cipher-writing, already in exist-
ence, in an obscure church, far away from London, over
the grave of a half-forgotten play-actor?
There is another point to be considered:
If the cipher was to depend on minute differences in
two fonts of type, so minute as to be scarcely recogniza-
ble by the naked eye, then it would make no difference
whether you used font A as often as you used font B, or
whether you used one just as often as the other. But if
the bi-literal alphabet was constructed to meet the exi-
gencies of an inscription, like that on the grave-stone,
made up of large and small letters, then, as the body of
an inscription or writing, of any kind, consists necessar-
ily, principally of the smaller letters, the symbol which
represents the smaller letters must be very much more
abundant than the symbol which represents the larger
letters. That is to say, — if a is to be placed under the
small letters, and b under the larger, then, as there are
more small letters in that grave-stone inscription than
large ones, the as must predominate in the symbols which
makes up the bi-literal alphabet.
Now when we come to examine "the bi-literal alpha-
bet," in the De Augmentis, we find that provision has
been made for precisely this state of things; the letter a
greatly preponderates over the letter b; and we will find
that in the grave-stone inscription the letter a represents
the more numerous small letters, and the letter b the cap-
itals, which do not occur so often. There are in Bacon's
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 41
"bi-literal alphabet" fifteen of the alphabetic symbols in
which the a's preponderate over the fr's; and only nine in
which the b's preponderate over the a's. There are six-
teen of the alphabetic signs that commence with a, and
only eight that commence with b.
If the "bi-literal cipher" did not contemplate some in-
scription already written in small letters and capitals, but
was written, as it purports to be, simply with a view to
the use of Roman and Italic letters, or letters from two
different fonts of type, why would this difference exist?
There was nothing in that case to prevent Bacon com-
mencing as many of his alphabetic symbols with b as with
a.
But if the reader will take the grave-stone inscription
and divide — we will say — the first line, into groups of five
letters each, but instead of placing an a under each small
letter, and a b under each large letter, reverse the process ;
and put a b under the small letters and an a under the cap-
itals, he will have the following results :
Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare
abbb abbbb bbb abbbb aaaa bbbbbbbbb
To diGG.
ab bbaa.
We have here six groups, or combinations of as and
b's, but four out of the six are not found in "the bi-literal
alphabet" to-wit : — bbbbb, bbabb, bbaaa, and bbbba. In
fact the only groups which are found in the Baconian al-
phabet are the first, abbba, (P) and the fifth, --abbbb (Q).
There is not a single one of the letters of the bi-literal
alphabet which begins with double b?— (bb), although
42 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
many of them commence with double a, (aa), and four
with aaa.
But if, on the contrary, we, put the a's under the small
letters, and the b's under the larger letters, then we have
six groups of letters, every one of which is equivalent to a
letter in the Baconian bi-literal alphabet!
It is to my mind conclusive, therefore, that the cipher
given in the De Augment-is was constructed with a view
to that inscription on Shakespeare's grave-stone.
If not, why would it correspond with it only in its pres-
ent shape?
If we find two pieces of machinery, in two different
places, wide apart, if you please, which, when put to-
gether dovetail into each other's parts, and together pro-
duce practical results, are we not forced to conclude that
they were made by the same workman and were intended
to be united?
But I go farther: — I am satisfied, as I have said, that
that particular bi-literal alphabet, given in the De Aug-
mentis, was not arranged prior to the construction of the
grave-stone inscription; but that the grave-stone inscrip-
tion was first in order of time, and the alphabet adapted
to its necessities. The stone was put in place in 1616; the
cipher was not published until 1623.
Let me give some of my reasons.
If the reader will look at that bi-literal alphabet he will
find certain symbols that can be read from left to right,
or from right to left, and still produce the same letter.
Here we have: — aaaaa — A. This, of course, is the
same read from either end. "A" is a letter that is very
often used in the construction of the words, — "Shakes-
peare/' "Plays," "Francis," "Bacon,"— etc.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 43
Then we turn to the letter E, which we know is the
letter used most in our language. The bi-literal symbol
for E is aabaa. This the reader will perceive produces
the same result read from either end.
Here too is the letter L ; — the symbol is, — ababa. This
likewise can be read either way. It is found in "plays,"
etc.
Then here is the letter P; — the symbol is, — abbba.
Either way it represents P. It is found in "Shakespeare"
and "Plays."
Here too is the letter S. Its sign is baaab. It can be
read either way. It is found in "Shakespeare" twice ; and
in "plays" and "Francis" once each.
Now does it not seem a little surprising that these sym-
bols have been cunningly constructed so as to perform
double duty? And we will see hereafter that they do
perform double duty; and that they are used forwards
and backwards, in the working out of the cipher in the
inscription on the Shakespeare grave-stone.
But this is not all. Besides these symbols which are
capable of being read either way, and either way repre-
senting the same letters, we have a number of others, in
this marvelous alphabet, which do double duty by repre-
senting one letter read from left to right and another let-
ter read from right to left.
There is, — aaaab ; from left to right it is B ; but turn it
around, — read it from right to left, — and it becomes
baaaa, which is the symbol for R.
Then there is the group,— aabab. From left to right it
represents F; turn it around and it becomes, — babaa, —
which is the symbol for W.
44 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
Then there is, — aabba. From left to right this is G;
but reversed it becomes, — abbaa, — the sign of N.
Then there is,— abaaa ; — from left to right this is I ;
from right to left it becomes aaaba, which stands for C.
Then there is abaab ; from left to right it represents K ;
reversed it is, — baaba, and signifies T.
Then there is, — abbab ; from left to right it is O ; from
right to left it is, — babba, — or Y.
Here then are live groups which yield the same letters
read either from left to right, or from right to left; and
six other groups that represent altogether twelve dif-
ferent letters, as we change the direction in which we
read them from left to right or from right to left. This
gives us altogether seventeen letters out of twenty-four;
for in the Baconian bi-literal alphabet the same signs
represent I and J, and V and U.
The reader will begin to think that there is more in
that De Augmenlis alphabet than appeared on the surface
of it. Instead of simple signs, to be read always from
left to right, as he had supposed, he finds that seventeen
of them can be read from right to left as well.
And he will find hereafter that it is upon this capacity
to do double duty, — this double-back-action quality, —
that the cipher in the grave-stone inscription depends.
But some one will say, that Bacon was driven to these
two-headed forms by the paucity of his materials, con-
fined, as he was, to the combinations of a and b. This is
a mistake. There were a number of other groupings, of
those letters, which he neglected. For instance he could
have used : — bbaaa, bbaba, bbaab, bbabb, bbbab, bbbaa,
bbbba, and bbbbb. This would have avoided eight out of
the eleven combinations that are susceptible of being read
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 45
from either end. But to use such a quantity of b's while
it would have made no difference, if the cipher depended
on two different fonts of type of the same class, wherein
the differences were minute ; yet if the cipher was to be
based on "a mixture of small letters and capitals," the
presence of such a great number of capitals would pro-
duce a result as "uncouth," upon every line of the in-
scription, as those words "SAKE" and "HERe/' and
"Enclo-Ased." Now then, if Bacon avoided such a re-
sult, by not using groups of letters commencing with bb
or bbb, because he knew it would make an "uncouth"
predominance of capitals, that was certain to attract at-
tention and arouse suspicion; was it not because he had
in his mind's eye, a certain grave-stone away off in Strat-
ford, where already the "uncouthness" of "SAKE" and
"HE.Re" and "Enclo-Ased" had been driven as far as
he could safely go?
46 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER VIII.
The Frame-Work of the Cipher.
4
Is there a scheme, a plan, in the construction of the
quartrain on the tomb-stone?
There is, — and a very perfect and regular one.
It will be observed that there are no points of punctu-
ation on the first line or the last line.
But on the second and third lines there are six.
There are two dashes on the second line and two on
the third line, and a period in the midst of the word
"HE.Re," at the end of the second line, and another
period at the end of the line. These six points of punc-
tuation are points of departure, from which the cipher
moves.
Three of the dashes are cunningly concealed, as hy-
phens, to unite the compound words "T-E," (the), on the
second line; "T-E/' (the), on the third line and "T-Es,"
(these), on the same line. But the fourth dash is not so
covered up; but is boldly injected into the middle of the
word "enclo-Ased." And this word, instead of being
spelled as it is now, and as it was in the First Folio of
the Plays of 1623, is given in this extraordinary form : —
"Enclo-Ased."
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 4-7
If the reader will turn to the play of Henry V., IV, 8,
he will find in this line "with charity enclosed in clay,"
the word spelled, in the First Folio, as here given. The
same method of spelling the word is used in — "We by
Anthony are all enclosed" (Jul. Caes., V, 3) ; and "Titin-
ius is enclosed around about/' ibid.
There was no excuse, therefore, in the custom of the
period, for splitting this word, on the tomb-stone, into
two parts, and heading the last fragment with a capital A.
But we shall see the necessity for this course as we pro-
ceed.
To make the frame-work of the cipher plainer, we will
repeat the inscription with the dashes made more con-
spicuous.
"Good Frend for Jesus SAivE forbeare
To dice T— E Dust Enclo— Ased HE.Re.
T
Blese be T E Man Y spares T Es Stones
T
And curst be He Y moves my Bones."
The lines may be thus represented :
It will be found as we proceed that these four dashes
are the boundary posts of the cipher; supplemented by
the periods in the middle and at the end of the word—
"HE.Re."
48 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER IX.
The Word "SHAKE."
Mr. Black, as we have shown, found that if the letters
constituting the first line were divided into groups of five
letters each, as proposed in Bacon's De Augmentis, and a
b placed under the capital letters and an a under the other
letters, we would have this result :
"Good Frend for Jesus SAKE forbeare"
baaa baaaa aaa baaaa b b b b aaaaaaaa
If now we apply to these symbols the Baconian alpha-
bet, we have these results :
baaab aaaaa aabaa aabbb baaaa
S A E H R
This last combination, baaaa, stands for R, if read
from left to right, or B if read from right to left. It then
becomes aaaab.
The first thing that occurred to me, based on my cipher
studies in the Plays, where the words move alternately
up and down the columns, was, that it was not likely that
the cipher would go straight ahead along the line. This
would be too simple a scheme for the subtlety of the great
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 49
cryptographer — the most penetrating and ingenious in-
tellect that ever lived.
It seemed to me that if S was the first letter of the
inner sentence, A would be the third letter, and E the
fifth letter.
What letters could come between S, A and E and make
a word?
And then it came to me that they might possibly be
H and K ; and that would give us :
ShAkE.
If there is a cipher on Shakspere's tomb-stone, as
seemed certain, and that cipher is precisely the one in-
vented by Francis Bacon, when a youth in Paris, then it
follows that it must have been put there by Bacon, or
some of his friends, to tell some hidden story. The dead
man, Shakspere, was not likely to have prepared, before
he died, a cipher for his own grave-stone, and framed it
according to the formula of the philosopher of Verulam.
If Shakspere was Shakespeare he would have had no se-
cret to reveal in a cipher. All that would have been need-
ed on his grave-stone — so far as he was concerned, — was
his own name; and that, — strange to say, — did not aj>
pear upon it !
Now, if Francis Bacon, or any one for him, desired
to put a secret writing over the corpse of Shakspere,
it must have been something about the man Shakspere,
or his alleged plays. And hence the cipher story would
very naturally contain the word "Shakspere" or "Shake-
speare ;" for the former spelling seemed to have rep-
resented the man of Stratford, and the latter form his
50 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
nom de plume, or the body of writings which were at-
tributed to him.
But where do we get the letters H and K which,
with S A E, will make up the first syllable, SHAKE?
It is clear there is no K on the first line ; and while
there is an H, it is not in a position to be inserted be-
tween S and A. We must look elsewhere.
There is that pillar-mark, that boundary stone, on
the second line, formed by the dash between the T and
the E.
"To diGG T— E Dust Enclo— Ased HE.Re".
Is this "our butt and very sea-mark?" Do we turn
back from that point? Is this the complement of the
first subdivision of the first line?
Let us see :
Take that combination of letters: "To diGG T— ."
If we place under each capital letter a b, as directed
by Bacon, beginning at the dash, we have this result:
cliGGT
aabbb
And this is Bacon's letter H!
This gives us, with the first letter of the first line
and the second letter of the second line, the letters :
SHA
The question comes, where is the K, which, with the
third letter of the first line, will make :
SHAKE
As A, the third letter of the word, Shake, came from
the first line, and began where the first letter S termi-
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 51
natecl, it follows that the letter K should come from
the second line, and should begin where the first letter
from the dash, (H,) terminated.
But the letter H : "diGG T — ," moving away from
the dash mark, left but two letters, "To," before it
reached the beginning of the second line; and to obtain
the other three letters, necessary to make up the group
of five, which constitutes a cipher letter, we must go
elsewhere. And where is it more natural to go than to
that same first line, with which we have been interlock-
ing, to obtain the letters S, H and A?
But as the movement is away from the dash, then
the "To" is to be read in an inverse order, and that will
give us a b.
We go to the beginning of the first line, and take the
first three letters thereof, still progressing backward,
as we did with "To," and we have "oo G." Place an a
under the small letters and b under the large letter
G, and we have a a b. Add the first two letters to this,
and we have
ab aab,
which is Bacon's sign for K!
Insert this between the A and the E, on the first line,
and we have :
SHAKE.
Thus :
-Good F"— baaab= S
-diGG T— "-^aabbb= H
"rend f" — aaaaa= A
•'•To Goo"— abaab= K
«or jes" aabaa= E
52 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
But it may be said that this is the result of chance;
that these letters just happened to come in this order.
There are those who, to use Bacon's expression, are
ready to believe that if the letters of the alphabet are
promiscuously scattered over the ground, they may ac-
cidentally form themselves into the words of the Iliad!
I hope that no such defective intelligences will be among
the readers of this book.
There is "the law of chances/' or "the doctrine of
probabilities".
Suppose we are trying to prove that the word SHAKE
is to 'be found in this grave-stone inscription.
As there are twenty-six letters in the alphabet there
is only one chance out of twenty-six that the letter S
should be the first letter.
And there are 26 times 26, or 676 chances against
one, that the next letter will be H.
And there are 26 times 676, or 17,576 chances against
one that the next letter will be A.
And there are 26 times 17,576, or 456,976 chances
against one, that the next letter will be K.
And there are 26 times 456,976, or eleven million,
eight hundred and eighty-one, four hundred and seventy-
six chances against one that the next letter will be the
letter E !
Those who are curious about such matters, and have
plenty of stationery and leisure, can figure out the prob-
abilities that all the cipher words, set forth in this book
came about, in due and regular order, by chance.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 53
CHAPTER X.
The Word "SPEARE."
Having found the word SHAKE, the next word to
be elaborated is SPEARE.
Having exhausted the signs departing backward from
the first dash in "diGG T — " on the second line, we now
turn to the second dash on the same line, found in the
midst of the word "Enclo — Ased," followed by the word
"H E. Re."
If we will consider the letters between that dash and
the last letter, or period, at the end of the second line,
we will have this formula:
"—Ased H E. Re."
The first five letters here are " — Ased H." Place a b
under the capitals at the beginning and end, (A and H)
and we have : — b a a a b. Turn to Bacon's alphabet, and
we find that this is the symbol for S : — the first letter of
"Speare."
Leaving the first part of the above group, and resort-
ing, as before, to the end of it, the end of the sentence,
and we have :
"d H E. Re."
54 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
Place an a under the smaller letters, and a b under
the capitals, and we have:
a b b b a;
and this, in Bacon's alphabet, is P ; — the second letter of
"Speare."
In the word SHAKE we found that the first line in-
terlocked with that part of the second line marked by
the dash. The same thing takes place here. To get
the word SHAKE we advanced along the first line to
"or Jesus." Place a b under the capital J, of Jesus, and
an a under each of the other letters, and we have :
a a b a a, — which .is the equivalent of E. But a a b a a is
E from either end; hence, having used it for the last
letter of SHAKE does not forbid our using it as the
third letter of Speare.
We go now to the end of the first line and move
through beare. None of these are capitals, they repre-
sent a a a a a, which is A} — the fourth letter of speare.
We return to the second line and start from the
period in the middle of "H E. Re." Moving out through
the "Re," (ba), and thence going to the end of the
first line, we have "are" — and the equivalent of these
is baaaa, which is R.
And if we start from where the P left off — "d H E.
Re," we come next to
«lo— Ase"
which is a a b a a or E, which concludes the word speare.
We have now worked out the entire word SHAKE-
SPEARE.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 55
We undertook to calculate how many chances there
are against one, by "the law of probabilities," for all
these letters to come out, in regular order, by accident;
but we got into the quadrillions and gave it up. It is
practically impossible.
But it may be said that the movement of the cipher
which gave us SHAKE was not precisely the same as
that which gave us SPEARE. In the former case the
letters came alternately from the first and second line;
in the latter they came alternately in groups of two
from the first and second lines. But there is no point
of departure in the first line — no dash, no period; while
the letters SP of SPEARE are bounded on the one side
by the dash in "Enclo — Ased" and on the other side
by the period at the end of "HE.Re." They move be-
tween two pillars, as it were.
Moreover, it was necessary that a cipher writing,
which was to withstand the scrutiny of three hundred
years, should not be too plain.
56 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XI.
The Word "PL AYES."
The words THE and AND, which we will hereafter
work out will exhaust the possibilities of the first line
of the inscription with the fragment between the dash
in "Enclo — Ased" and the end of the second line; and
use every one of the symbols within those limits.
We come now to the word Playes. It is a marvelous
piece of work, growing mainly out of that minute frag-
ment, ".Re," at the end of the second line, with a period
before it and another after it, interlocking with that
fragment of -the third line, which is found beyond the
fourth dash, viz. between "T— Hs:"— in
T
"Y spares T— Es Stones."
We commence at the final e of "HE.Re" and move
backward, which gives us :
"d HE.Re,"
and placing an a under both the d and the terminal e,
and b's under HER, we have abbba, which in Bacon's
cipher alphabet, is the equivalent of P. We found this
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 57
P used in the word SPEARE; but it is so constructed
that it can be used moving in either direction, 'and makes
P from either end. We find it employed here as the
first letter of the word PLAYES.
We next commence at the dash on the third line in
"T — E," as we did in previous instances.
But there is this difference to be observed between
the dash in "Enclo— Ased" and the dash in "T— E," on
the third line. The word "Enclo — Ased" is perfect in
itself, indeed more than perfect, for it has more letters
in it than are necessary. But in T — E the dash is not
only a punctuation mark, or pillar of division, but it is
a symbol of elision, and represents the omitted h, in
"The;" which is to be taken as a small letter because
it is not capitalized. If this letter, h, is inserted, the
sign "T — E" becomes "THE".
Therefore if we begin at the dash and go forward
we will have " — hEs St" (ones) ; and placing a b un-
der the capitals and an a under the small letters, as usual,
we have ababa; — which, in Bacon's cipher, means L, —
the second letter of the word PLAYES.
If now we turn to the end of the subdivision between
the dash, just referred to, and the end of line third, and
begin at the end of the line, we have the letters : "Stones."
Count off five letters; we have "tones" — there are no
capitals here, and it is therefore aaaaa, the equivalent
of A, the third letter of PLAYES.
Returning to that period, between H E and Re, near
the end of the second line, and we have "Re," which
stands for "b a'' in the cipher, moving forward ; then
return to the period again, and we have the letters
"d H E." Place a letter b under the capitals, H and E,
58 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
and an a under the d, (the last letter of Enclo — Ased),
and we have b b a. Add these to the b a, already ob-
tained, and we have babba, which is the Baconian equiv-
alent of Y.
If now we take up the symbol where the last letter left
off, "d HE.Re," and moving toward the beginning of
the line, we find the next symbol "lo-Ase," which repre-
sents a a b a a, the equivalent of the cipher letter E.
It is not necessary to say that in that day the word
"plays" was spelled "playes." See Hugh Holland's in-
troductory verses to the 1623 Folio:
"His days are done that made the dainty Playes."
And Heminge and Condell, in their dedication to the
First Folio, speak of "the humble offer of his playes
to your most noble patronage."
We turn now to the same dash, on the second line, in
the middle of the word "Enclo— Ased (HE.Re") ; and
starting from the dash and going towards the end of
the line, we have "Ased H," which is baaab, the cipher
letter S. We used this for the first letter of the word
"Speare;" but as it signifies S from either end, we can
use it again.
We have now the words:
THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYES.
But even this is not the end of this wonderful piece
of work.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 59
CHAPTER XII.
The Words "THE" and "AND."
We have found that the first fifteen letters of the in-
scription on the tomb-stone were resolvable into the
cipher letters S A E ; and that these, with the first two
derived from the ten letters starting from the dash T — E
on the second line, made the word SHAKE.
We also noticed that the five letters after those which
made the E, represented the cipher letter H. Thus :
Good Fjrend f
baaa b|aaaa a
or Jes|us SAK|E forb
aa baa|aa bbb|b aaaa
eare
S A E H R or B
Now we cannot, tell why the cryptographer stopped
when he reached the- third letter on the first line, E ; un-
less it was that the number of cipher letters, (three), de-
rivable from the first line was controlled by the fact
that only two letters (H and K) were derivable from
that part of the second line anterior to the dash in
"T — E," moving backward, as the other moved forward.
But it is sufficient that, being master of his own work,
he did so.
But there stands the fouith cipher letter on the first
line, H.
60 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
As S A E made SHAKE, by the interjection of the
two letters H and K from the second line, between them,
it follows that H, which here stands alone, is probably
preceded and followed by two other letters, which con-
stitute with it a word or part of a word.
When we worked out the letter K which followed the
first S, on the first line, Ave obtained it by taking the
first two letters of the second line, "To," and using
them in reversed order, making "a b" and filling out
the three letters that are lacking to make the group of
five, from the first line: "Goo;" also in reversed order,
which made "a a b" Now let us reverse this process
and take the first three letters of the second line, "To d,"
which are equal, moving in the reversed order, to "b a a,"
and complete the group of five by taking the two first
letters of the first line "Go," which are equal to "ba."
Adding these to the baa, and we have b a a b a, which is
the cipher sign for T.
And note how cunningly this thing is contrived : the
a b a a b is the symbol for K, while ba aba, which is the
K sign reversed, is T. And thus the same letters give us
the K of SHAKE and the T of THE.
Because when we place the T before that fourth sign
on the first line we have T H ; and when we take up
the work where we left off, to get the T, that is with
"Go," we find that the next five letters of the text are
"od Fre" (Good Frend), which stands for aabaa, and
that is the equivalent of E, and that gives us T H E ; and
that placed before the words we have just worked out
gives us :
THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYES.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
61
We have been hitherto working upon the first line
from the left to the right. Let us reverse the process
and begin at the end of the line and go towards the be-
ginning. We then have
Good
Frend
for Je
sus SA
baa
baaa
*aaa ba
aaa bb
Ror B
C or I
D
KE for
bb aaa
D
beare|
aaaaa
A
If we take the two last letters and insert an N between
them we have the word AND. This N ought to come
from the second line, and, as we seem to have exhausted
all possible combinations preceding the dash, on that
line, (in the combination "T — E,") let us try it from
the other side of the dash.
Wre have already found, in the case of the cipher let-
ter L in PLAYES, that the dash is not only a mark of
punctuation, but a mark of elision as well ; and repre-
sents the absent letter h. Let us apply the same rule
to "T — E Dust," on the second line, that we did to
"T — Es Stones" on the third line. The result is, we
will have " — h E Dust" ; this gives us abb a a, which
is the cipher letter for N; and this, with the A and D
at the end of the first line, gives us the word AND.
Then it follows that reference is made in this cipher
inscription not only to "the Shakespeare Plays," but to
something else. What is it?
62 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XIII.
"Robert Greene!'
We have just found that the first five letters of the
cipher inscription, to the right of the dash, in "T — E,"
on the second line, inserting an h in the "T — E," were
"— hE Dus"
and that placing a b under the capitals and an a under
the other letters gave us
"abba a"
which is the cipher letter N, and was used to make the
word AND. But if we reverse this, we have "a a b b a,"
and if we turn to the Bacon alphabet, we find this stands
for G. So that the symbol which is N, read from left
to right, is G read from right to left.
There is a fragment of the text running from the dash
in "T — E," on the second line, to the dash in the middle
of the word "Enclo — Ased" on the same line ; and those
five letters, which precede the last named dash, "En-
clo— ," give us the symbol "b a a a a/' which is the cipher
letter R.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
63
If we will now commence at the end of the second
line, and divide the text into groups of five letters each,
we will have:
o d'iGG
a aabb
D
T(h)E Du
babba
YorO
st Enc
aabaa
lo — Ase
aabaa.
d HERe.
abbba
P
In these two E's we have the third and fourth letters
of the word GREENE.
And returning again to the dash in "T — E," on the
second line, we have :
— h E Bus
which is equivalent to abbaa, which is the symbol for
N; which gives us GREEN.
And as aabaa is E from either end, we take again
the E which gave us the fourth cipher letter of GREEN,
and reading it in reverse order we have the full name
of GREENE.
No suggestion hafe ever been made, before this dis-
covery, that Francis Bacon had anything to do with
the plays which go by the name of Robert Greene.
Greene was born at Ipswich, in 1560; one year before
Francis Bacon saw the light in London. Both were
students at the University of Cambridge, and probably
at the same time. Bacon left there in 1575, and Greene
took his degree in 1578; when he was entered there we
do not know. Bacon traveled in Europe from about
1576 until the death of his father in 1579. In 1578
Greene was also traveling abroad.
Greene returned, ruined by the dissipations he had
learned upon the continent; and thereafter earned a
precarious living by his pen, around the play-houses,
64 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
writing novels and plays. He died in great poverty and
degradation in 1592, the very year in which, on March
3, appeared, according to Halliwell Phillipps, the first
"Shakespeare play;" and one year before Christopher
Marlowe passed away, slain in a drunken brawl. Shaks-
pere and Greene are connected by the fact that the
"Winter's Tale" of the former is simply an amplified,
poetical copy of Greene's prose novel, "Pandosta;" the
identity descending even to the minutest details.
The geographical blunder, so often referred to, in
"The Winter's Tale," of giving Bohemia a sea-coast, is
taken from ''Pandosta."
It is somewhat remarkable that a dramatist, like Shaks-
pere, should make a play out of a novel, written by an-
other man, his contemporary, so popular that it had
passed through fourteen editions during the life of its
author. We could not imagine Rudyard Kipling re-writ-
ing and enlarging "She." But if the writings of both
Greene and Shakspere emanated from the brain of a
third party, that party would feel free to work over his
own material as often as he pleased.
Among Greene's writings were "The History of Or-
lando Furioso," which has been described as "a stepping
stone to Lear and Hamlet;" and "Alphonsus — King of
Arragon," which is very much in the style of Marlowe.
There was also "The History of Friar Bacon and Friar
Bungay;" which the Encyclopaedia Britannica refers to
as "a comedy brimful of amusing action and genial fun,
and at the same time containing a domestic love story
of unsurpassed freshness and brightness."
The intellectual activity of Francis Bacon began at an
early age. At sixteen he was speculating on the laws
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 65
of the imagination ; and yet when the first Shakespeare
play appeared in 1592, he was thirty-one years of age.
What was he doing during the intervening fifteen years ?
I have shown in the "Great Cryptogram," p. 939, that
he had, prior to 1592, produced a whole body of writ-
ings, as extensive as the Shakespeare plays themselves.
The cipher on the tomb-stone tells us that we are to
add to the catalogue there given the writings of Robert
Greene.
66 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XIV.
"Christopher Marlowe."
We have seen how that curious little fragment of the
text, on the second line, beginning with a period and
ending with a period, thus :
"Enclo— Ased HE.Re.",
plays an important part, altogether out of proportion to
its brevity. And we must expect that the cunning in-
tellect which designed it would utilize it backward and
forward, from left to right, and from right to left, — and
in all possible shapes and methods.
We have already seen the important part which ".Re."
performed in the production of the word PLAYES;
but we have not yet reached the limit of its possibilities.
Suppose we begin at the period, at the front of that
baby fragment of a cipher ".Re.", and put, as usual, a b
under the "R" and an a under the terminal "e", and
move backward toward the beginning of the line, the
second line; then we have "ab." Where are the other
three letters necessary to make a cipher letter? Having
begun at the last period, let us start again from the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 67
period at the beginning of "Re" and again put a b under
the two capital letters "HE.", and an a under the "d"
which is the last letter of the word "Enclo — Ased;" and
we have the formula "a b a bb," which is the cipher
symbol for the letter M.
And this, we will find, is the first letter of the name
Marlowe, to whom Ben Jonson refers, when he says
in the introductory verses to the First Folio (1623),
"And tell how farre thou didst our Lily outshine,
Or sporting Kid, or Marlowe's mighty line."
We saw how the cipher moved in other instances,
from the first to the second, and from the second to the
third line.
Having commenced with the period between "H E"
and "Re," it is the same, for the purposes of the Cipher,
as if we had begun at the beginning of the second line,
or at the dash in the word "Enclo — Ased." Hence we
go to the end of the third line, where we find the word
"Stones" ; and as there are no capitals in the first five
letters, "tones," we place an a under each letter, and
we have "a a a a a," which is the cipher letter A. And
this is the second letter of the word MARLOWE.
We come back to the end of the second line again.
We began with the period in the middle of "HE.Re."
What is the boundary which limits that fragment at the
left end? It is the dash in the middle of the word
"Enclo — Ased." Starting from that dash and moving
towards the beginning of the line, we have the letters:
"Enclo."
68 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
place a b under the capital E and an a under the other
four letters, and we have
"b a a a a,"
which is the symbol for R, the third letter of the word
MARLOWE.
We come again to the same symbol which gave us the
L in PLAYES, which in the cipher is ababa, and which
is so constructed that it gives us the same letter from
front to rear and from rear to front. It is found in the
third line.
Let us explain :
The A for the second letter of Marlowe came, we
saw, from the last five letters of "Stones," at the end of
the third line. The boundary stone of that fragment is
the dash in the word "T — Es," on the same line. If we
will take the words "T — Es Stones," and, as we did
before, place an a for the suppressed letter h between
T — E ; and then, as usual, put a's under the smaller let-
ters, and b's under the capitals, we shall have — a b a b a ;
— which is L; the fourth letter of "Marlowe."
We return again to the end of the second line, to
that same "baby fragment," ".Re.", which is equivalent
to the cipher signs "b a." We used it to obtain the
first two letters of the cipher letter M, and part of the
letter P in PLAYES, but now we reverse it and com-
mence at the end of the line, and we have (fa b," which
brings us to the period in the middle of the word
"HE.Re"; and, therefore, taking the three letters pre-
ceding that period, we have "dHE." ; place an a under
the d and two b's under the H E and we have abb
add to this the a b already obtained and we have the
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 69
combination abbab, which is the cipher symbol for O,
the fifth letter of the word MARLOWE.
And see how cunningly this is contrived : abbba is P,
read from either end ; babba is Y, and abbab is O ;
and all of them are deducible from that combination
"clHE.Re." ; but part of them depend for their existence
upon that period in the middle of the "HE. Re." For
if the last letter e had been like the rest, a capital letter,
and the word had been "HERE," these various cipher
letters would not have been possible.
We return once -more from the second to the third
line, and here we note the meaning of the fact that while
the dash in "T — E," in the second line, is disconnected
from either the T or the E/and does not touch either,
the two dashes on the third line extend in a wedge-like
or cuneiform figure from the T to the E, thus :
"T — E" and "T — Es."
This I interpret to mean that the suppressed h, be-
tween the t and the e, may either be represented by an a,
as we have done to obtain the letter L; or that the
wedge-like band of union can be understood to tie the
T and the E together to the exclusion of the h. In a
complicated cipher like this the smallest details have
their meaning, and must be taken into consideration.
In the first part of King Henry Fourth, Act I, Sc. 3,
there will be found 'on page 52, of the First Folio (His-
tories), about the middle of the page, a very long dash,
at the end of a speech of Hotspurre. I thought at first
it was an accident ; but I afterwards discovered that it
was necessary to the cipher narrative; and took the
place of a subdivision of the text by stage directions,
70 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
of which there are none on that page. In the same
way in Second Henry IV, Act i, Sc. 3rd of the First
Folio, page 77, Column i, there are two instances where
the text is broken into by one-half of a bracket mark,
while there is no corresponding or supplemental bracket
mark to accompany it. The Chief Justice says :
"Well, heaven mend him, I pray let me speak with
As it is thus printed in the Folio, the "you" being
carried to the line above, the bracket mark appears to
be very natural But my studies show thaf it is part
of the mechanism of the cipher.
A little further along, on the same column and page,
we have a clearer instance of the same kind.
FalstafT says:
.
"Very well (my Lord) very well: rather an't please
you) it is the disease of not Listning, the malady of
not Marking, that I am troubled withall."
Here we would naturally conclude that, by an error
of the compositor, the bracket mark between "rather"
and "an't" had been dropped, and that the line read :
"Very well (my Lord) very well: rather (an't please
you) it is the disease," etc.
But I shall demonstrate hereafter that these appar-
ent errors are a necessary part of the cipher, and that
this half bracket mark is as necessary a point of de-
parture as the beginning or end of a page or column.
In such a work as we are engaged upon there are no
typographical blunders; and nothing is so minute that
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 71
it should not be taken into account. Everything is in-
tended and everything has a meaning.
If, then, we again turn to the third line and begin at
the E in "T— Es" and go forward, we will have "Es
Sto," and placing a b under the large letters and an a
under the small ones, we have babaa, which constitutes
the cipher symbol W ;— the sixth letter of MARLOWE.
We return again to the second line and commence
where the combination "dHE.Re." left off, which gave
us M, P, etc., and we find that the preceding letters are
«lo— Ase" (Enclo— Ased HE.Re."), and placing a b
under the capital letter A and a's under the others, we
have "aabaa," which is the cipher letter E ; and the last
or seventh letter of MARLOWE.
I need not say to students of the Bacon-Shakespeare
question that it has long been believed by many of them
that Christopher Marlowe was an early mask of Francis
Bacon.
There are many reasons for this.
Christopher Marlowe, or Marlin, as the name was
often written, was born in Canterbury, two months be-
fore Shakspere saw the light in Stratford. He, like
Bacon and Greene, was a student at Cambridge. He
was a drunken, licentious, depraved creature, and was
"stabbed to death by a bawdy serving man rival of his,
in his lewd love," June I, 1593, when he was in hiding
for blasphemy, in his 2Qth year! And yet, with such a
record, the Encyclopaedia Britannica says:
"He is the greatest discoverer, the most daring and
inspired pioneer, in all our poetic literature. Before him
there was neither genuine blank verse, nor a genuine
tragedy in our language. After his arrival the way was
72 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
prepared, the paths were made straight for Shake-
speare."
Marlowe was slain June I, 1593, and the first Shake-
speare Play, Henry VI., appeared March 3, 1592; and
yet there are high authorities who claim that part or all
of Henry VI. was written by Marlowe! Swinburne
finds that the opening lines of the second part of Henry
VI. are out Christophorus Marlowe aut diabolus. The
EncyclopaediaBritannica thinks the "Contention between
the two famous Houses of York and Lancaster," usu-
ally attributed to Shakespeare, was written by Marlowe ;
and Halliwell Phillipps finds striking coincidences be-
tween Marlowe's Edward II. and the Contention; and
a line from the Jew of Malta, of Marlowe, reappears in the
Third Part of Henry VI., attributed to Shakespeare.
Marlowe says in his Doctor Faustus, speaking of Helen
of Troy:
"Was this the face that launched a thousand ships,
And burnt the topless towers of Ilium?"
While Shakespeare ( ?) says in Troilus and Cressida,
(n, 2), speaking also of the same Helen of Troy:
"She is a pearl,
Whose price hath launched above a thousand ships,
And turned crownded kings to merchants."
The Encyclopaedia Britannica says of Marlowe's Doc-
tor Faustus:
"Few masterpieces of any age, in any language, can
stand beside this tragic poem, for the qualities of terror
and splendor, for intensity of purpose and sublimity of
note."
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 73
Hazlitt pronounces one scene in Marlowe's Edward
II. certainly superior to a parallel scene in Shakespeare's
Richard II.
There has been but one so-called ''' Shakespeare" in
the five or ten thousand years of the recorded history
of the human race ; and yet we are asked to believe that
two of them were born in England, in 1564, within two
months of each other; and but for the knife of "a
bawdy servingman" Marlowe would have developed as
mighty a genius as that of Shakspere!
Is it not more reasonable to suppose, as stated on the
tomb-stone, that both were but masks of the greatest
intellect that ever dwelt on the planet — Francis Bacon ?
74 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XV.
"Bacon."
We have now got the words :
THE GREENE, MARLOWE and SHAKESPEARE
PLAYES ;
clearly expressed, in the very cipher of Francis Bacon,
as set forth in his great work, the De Augmentis, on the
grave-stone of the play-actor of Stratford, William
Shakspere.
But what about them? What is the statement which
that curious inscription was put there to declare to the
world, when the world was ready to interpret it?
Let us go a little farther.
We repeat the last two lines of the inscription :
T
"Blese be T — E Man Y spares T — Es Stones
T
And curst be He Y moves my Bones."
As we saw SHAKE and other words resulting from
the application of the Bacon cipher, alternately to the
first and second lines of the inscription, let us see what
the third and fourth lines will yield us, confining our-
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 75
selves to that portion of the fourth line after the com-
T
pound sign Y, and beginning at the end of the $d line.
Suppose we draw a line between the Y and T on the
T
fourth line, thus Y|, and make that a starting point —
like the dashes and periods, already considered.
We then have to the right of the line, "T move," and
if we place a b under the T and an a under each of the
other letters, we have "baaaa," which, proceeding from
left to right, is the cipher letter R; but proceeding from
right to left it is the cipher letter B : — the first letter of
the word BACON. We will learn hereafter some-
thing about the alternate manner in which these signs are
to be read.
As the letter B came from the beginning of the frag-
ment to the right of the dividing line between the sign
T
"Y", on the fourth line, the next letter, which is A,
should come from the end of the third line. We turn
to the end of the third line and there we have it: —
"S | tones." Place an a under each of these five letters,
"tones," — and we have "aaaaa," the cipher symbol for
A, already used once; but which is A, read from either
end.
We return to the fourth line.
We saw that B, the first letter of Bacon, came from
"T move."
The next letters are
"s my Bo|nes."
Place an a under the small letters "s m y and o"
and a b under the capital letter B, and we have: aaaba.
76 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
We turn to the alphabet, in the De Augmentis, and we
find this stands for the letter C, the third letter of the
word "Bacon.'
Now we found we obtained the second letter of Bacon,
a, from the letters "tones," the conclusion of the word
"Stones." Let us proceed towards the left again. What
are the next five letters of the inscription ? They are :
«s T— Es S"
in the sentence :
T
"Y spares T— Es Stones"
Place a b under the large letters and an a under the
others, and the five letters "s T — Es S" will give us abbab,
which constitutes the cipher letter O, the fourth letter of
the word BACON.
The last letter having been found on the third line, the
next must be found on the fourth line. But as we had
exhausted all the combinations of five letters each when
we reached "BO," and there are but three letters left
"nes" and ive are at the end of the inscription, and can
carry it no farther; we are constrained to move to the
left, away from the end, and so we take the third group
of letters from the end, which is
"e Y mo."
This becomes "abbaa," which is the symbol for N, the
last letter of BACON.
Here the letters B A C O face each other in complete
and perfect alternation, of line with line; and the last
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
77
letter N is only thrown out of the regular order of suc-
cession because we have so nearly reached the end of
the inscription, that we can go no farther in that direction.
The word BACON is found, like a signature, in the
lower right hand corner of the inscription on Shakespere's
tomb-stone !
78 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XVI.
"Francis."
Having found "BACON" in the right-hand lower cor-
ner, let us see what is in the lower left hand corner of
the inscription.
T
We again begin at that sign "Y." on the fourth line.
We again draw a line between the two capitals, thus :
The first five letters to the left of that dividing line are :
"be He Y".
Place b's under the capitals and as under the other
letters and we have aabab — which is the sympol of F, —
the first letter of the word "Francis."
As this was found on the fourth line and at the end of
the subdivision, we turn to the beginning of the third
line ; and we find "Blese." Place a b under the capital B
and a's under the other letters, and we have baaaa — which
is the symbol for R, the second letter of "Francis/'
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 79
We return to the fourth line and continue, to the left,
from where we left off, when we obtained F, to wit : "be
He Y ;" the preceding letters are "curst." There are no
capitals here, and we place an a under each letter and we
have aaaaa, which stands for A ; the third letter of "Fran-
cis."
As F came from the 4th line, beginning at the divid-
T
ing line between Y and T, in "Y," and R from the be-
ginning of the 3d line, and A commences on the 4th
line where the F left off, we should expect N to begin
where R left off, that is on the 3d line. R came from
the word "Blese." The next letters after "Blese" are
"be T— E." The wedge-shaped hyphen shows that the
dash in "T — E" can be treated as a mark of elision, or
as an evidence that the letters are solidly united; hence
we have aabb. We need one more letter to make the
five necessary to constitute a cipher letter. We have ex-
hausted that part of the third line which precedes the
sign "T — E." We go again, therefore, to the fourth
line, and take the letter preceding where the A, ("curst")
left off, which is the letter d, the last letter of the word
"And." This is not a capital letter and so we add an-
other a to the aabb already obtained, and we have aabba,
which, read from the right to the left, becomes abbaa,
the symbol for N, — the fourth letter of "Francis."
We have now exhausted all of that part of the fourth
T
line preceding the sign Y, except the two letters "An"
at the beginning of the line. We put these down as
"ba" We need three more letters. We go to the end
of the first subdivision of the 3d line "Blese" and take the
80 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
last letters "ese" ; put an a under each of these, and place
them before the "ba," just obtained, and we have aaaba,
which is the cipher C, — the fifth letter of the word
"Francis."
There being nothing left for us on the fourth line, and
nothing in that subdivision on the third line, except the
letters "Bl" of "Blese," we set them down, in reverse
order, thus "ab"; and then return upon the line and take
the letters "les" of "Blese," and, as they are all small let-
ters we put an a under each and add them to the ab, al-
ready obtained, and we have abaaa, which is the cipher
sign for I, the sixth letter of "Francis."
Having exhausted the capabilities of that left-hand
corner of the 3d and 4th line, we ascend to the second
line, and take the first five letters, which are :
"To diGG."
We place a b under T and G and an a under the other
letters, and we have — "baaab ;" which is the cipher sym-
bol for S,— the last letter of FRANCIS. We had not
before used this S.
And so we find that the third and fourth lines produce
the words : —
FRANCIS BACON;
"Francis" from the left-hand corner and "Bacon" from
the right-hand corner.
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE, 81
CHAPTER XVII. ;
"Wrote."
If the reader will observe closely he will note that on
the third and fourth lines, about the middle of each line,
T
there is the sign Y, which is the sign of "that" This can
be either regarded as a compound letter, and mark of
division ; or it can be reduced to its elements and treated
as "That." We shall see that it is used in both ways :
We commence with it on the fourth line as a compound
T
sign, "Y;" and, — as we did before, — we draw a line be-
tween the Y and T, thus :
__
YL_
Now let us begin on the left of that division line
and we have
"be He Y."
We place a b under the capitals and an a under the
other letters, and we have :
"aabab;"
which, read in the reversed order is "babaa." These let-
6
82 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
ters gave us the F which is the first letter of Francis ; for
"aabab" is F and "babaa" is W.
Now let us take the five letters to the right of that di-
viding line and we have
IT;
Y | move ;
and placing a b under the T and an a under the other
letters and we have "baaaa," which is the cipher symbol
for R, — which gave us, reversed, also the B of Bacon.
T
Now let us treat the "Y" as a compound sign, and take
two letters to the left of the Y', and two letters to the
T
right of it, and we have "He Ym ;" which is equivalent to
"babba" which, read in the reversed order, gives us
"abbab," which is the cipher letter O.
T
Let us now resolve the sign Y into its elements and
we have "ThaTm," which is the equivalent of "baaba,"
and that is the cipher letter T.
We took two letters preceding Y and two letters suc-
ceeding it and obtained the letter O. Let us now take
the two letters preceding T and the two letters succeed-
ing it, and we have
"haTmo;"
which becomes aabaa — the cipher letter E.
We thus have: —
WROTE.
T
And all of it evolved out of that symbol "Y," in the
middle of the fourth line !
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 83
We have therefore worked out of the four lines of the
inscription the words:
FRANCIS BACON WROTE THE GREENE, MAR-
LOWE AND SHAKESPEARE PLAYES.
There is a rule governing the interpretation of the
cipher combinations as to whether they shall be read
from front to rear or from rear to front; but it is diffi-
cult to follow it because so many of the signs are the
same read from either end. The rule seems to be that
those which count from the beginnings of the subdivi-
sions of the inscription, alternate with each other; and
those from the ends of the subdivisions also alternate
with each other ; and thus there is a double but distinct
alternation. The cipher in the Plays is constructed upon
a somewhat similar plan.
84 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Some Considerations.
We do not think any person, however sceptical or crit-
ical he may be, will deny that Francis Bacon's cipher was
used in the inscription, which at, or soon after the time
of Shakespere's death, was carved upon a stone and
placed over his mortal remains.
This alone is a most important and pregnant fact.
It must be remembered that on the surface of things
there did not appear to have been the slightest connec-
tion, during their lives, between the philosopher and
statesman of Saint Albans and the play-actor of Strat-
ford.
There are no prose writings that are attributed to
vShakspere. In all the world there is no scrap of manu-
script belonging to him, — except four rude signatures, —
three of wrhich are attached to his will. And yet the
British Museum contains probably tons of manuscripts
of that era, including letters of Francis Bacon, and his
"Promus," or scrap book of suggestions and quotations,
and even the book- of memoranda of his legal and other
engagements. It is needless to say that, so far as we
know, Shakspere never alluded, in writing, to Francis
Bacon, or to any one else among his contemporaries. It
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 85
is also clear that the voluminous compositions of Bacon
do not mention the name of Shakspere ; and although they
contain innumerable quotations from the poets, ancient
and modern, nothing was taken from those plays which
are now and must always continue to be the wonder of
the world.
Shakspere's grave was more than sixty miles distant
from St. Albans, in the midst of a filthy little, straw-
thatched town of fifteen hundred inhabitants; and sur-
rounded by roads that were almost impassable to the
few wheeled vehicles in existence at that time. And yet
we find here a stone which unquestionably contains a
cipher invented by Francis Bacon in his youth, in Paris ;
which is subsequently published in one of his philoso-
phical works.
Apart from the statement, made by the secret writ-
ing of the inscription, which we have been considering,
the mere fact that Francis Bacon's cipher is found on
Shakspere's tomb-stone, proves that there was some
hidden and mysterious connection between the two men,
which did not appear on the surface of their lives.
It will be impossible to find any other inscription, of
that age, which contains such an "uncouth mixture" of
large and small letters : a mixture, too, which violates
reason and all the proprieties ; as when the name of "Je-
sus" is given in small letters, and the next word "Sake"
is presented in capitals. It was not the custom of that
age, as I have shown, to spell "enclosed" "encloased";
and it certainly never was the custom of that or any
other age to divide it in the middle by a hyphen and give
the next letter as a capital! Illiteracy on the part of
a carver of tomb-stones, might make the size of the
86 THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
letters irregular, but it certainly would not intersperse
dashes and periods in the middle of words where they
were not rieeded ; and laboriously carve them into a stone.
There is no parallel for that word "HE.Re."
But there could be a great mixture of large and small
letters which, when divided, as the cipher rule requires,
into groups of five letters each, would not give a single
one of the cipher letters, as set forth in the De Augmen-
tis. For instance, not one of those letters begins with
two or three b's, or capital letters; and yet in any acci-
dental jumble of large and small letters it could not but
happen that there would be some groups, of five letters,
which would begin with two or three capitals. For in-
stance if the letters "SAKE f" was one of the groups of
five, it would give us "bbbba" which would not be the
equivalent of any of the cipher letters.
Not only does the inscription, when divided into
groups of five, give us the Baconian cipher alphabet, but
it gives us every letter of it ! And there is no waste ma-
terial left over!
And it will be observed that in working out the sen-
tence : "Francis Bacon wrote the Greene, Marlowe and
Shakespeare Playes," we have made no leaps from one
part of the inscription to another. There are no jumps,
for instance, from the first line to the fourth, or from
the fourth to the first. The cipher words are in contin-
uous groups.
The upper left-hand corner gives us THE and
SHAKE ; the upper right-hand corner gives us SPEARE
and. AND. The middle subdivision of the second line
gives us GREENE ; and it is a curious fact that only on
this second line are two E's found standing together, just
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 87
as they stand together in the word "Greene." The word
PLAYP2S comes from the end of the second line, starting
from that subdivision formed by the two periods at the
end and in the middle of the word "HE.Re.", and bend-
ing back, or overflowing, upon the end of the third line.
And from the same points of departure, and going over
the same ground, and using the same letters, (they being
some of those capable of being used from right to left
or from left to right,) we have the word MARLOWE.
This seems to have exhausted the upper two lines from
the starting points we have used; and we come to the
third and fourth lines. These are simpler and plainer
in construction. There is nothing like the "Enclo-Ased"
or the "HE.Re." in them ; and there being therefore few-
er starting points "there is less of the cipher. We find
therefore that the lower left-hand corner contains the
word FRANCIS; while the lower right-hand corner
T
contains the word BACON ; and a single sign "(Y)" cov-
ers, very curiously, the word WROTE.
It may be asked whether these words are all that are
contained under the cover of the inscription on the tomb-
stone? We do not think they are. An alteration of a
point of departure might produce an entirely new set of
cipher symbols. We seem to perceive evidences of much
more than we have worked out: — including a claim to
the authorship of a great Spanish work, which has hith-
erto not been in anywise associated >with the name of
Francis Bacon.
Neither should we be surprised if there were anagrams,
depending upon arithmetical relationships, between the
letters themselves and not based on a bi-literal cipher.
88 THK; CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE.
In this way we account for the fact that the first word
of the third line of the inscription is "Blese" instead of
"Blest." There can be no accidental errors in such a
rare and curious piece of work as this is ; and the substi-
tution therefore of an e for a t has a meaning and a pur-
pose ; just as the spelling of "Frend" for "Friend" in the
first line was necessary for the working out of the bi-lit-
eral cipher.
Mr. Isaac Hull Platt, of Lakewood, New Jersey, has
recently published an interesting essay, entitled: — "Are
the Shakespeare Plays signed by Francis Bacon?" He
attempts to show that that remarkable word, which ap-
pears in Love's Labor Lost, (I V.I) : — "honorificabilitud-
initatitus," is an enlargement or modification of the word
"Honorificabilitudino," which occurs in the Northum-
berland manuscript, in connection with the words "Fran-
cis Bacon" and "William Shakespeare;" and he claims
that the latter form contains the anagram: — ''Initia hi
ludi Fr. Bacono" : — "these plays (are) in the inception,
Francis Bacon's/' And in this connection he calls atten-
tion to the following passage in the same Act and scene of
"Love's Labour's Lost":—
"Moth. Peace ! the peal begins.
Arm. Monsieur, are you lettered ?
Moth. Yes, yes, he teaches boys the horn book. What
is a b spelt backward, with the horn on his head?
Hoi. Ba, pueritia, with a horn added."
Mr. Platt thinks he finds in this "ba with a horn,"
ba cornu, which, he says, will pass for a pun on the word
"Bacon."
THE CIPHER ON THE TOMBSTONE. 89
It was an age of ciphers and anagrams. All the for-
eign correspondence of states was carried on in the for-
mer, and even astronomers did not disdain to use the lat-
ter. Galileo, it will be remembered, put forth some of his
wonderful telescopic discoveries in anagrams, (to fore-
stall those who might attempt to steal his honors,) until
he was ready to make full announcement of them, in their
proved details.
BOOK TWO.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 93
CHAPTER XIX.
The Sonnets.
The cipher being real it follows, it seems to me, as a
matter of course, that a deposit exists somewhere in the
world, in which are hidden the original manuscripts of
the plays, and the other wprks of Bacon ; with the internal
cipher narrative in each fairly written out ; and a vast
mass of other matters, throwing light upon the inner
history of the reigns of King Henry VIII. , King Edward,
Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth and King James I.
In Bacon's Natural History, (Cent. VIII, sec. 771)
we read :
"I remember Livy doth relate, that there were found at
a time two coffins of lead in a tomb ; whereof the one con-
tained the body of King Numa, it being some four hun-
dred years after his death; and the other, his books of
sacred rites and ceremonies, and the discipline of the
pontiffs ; and that in the coffin that had the body, there
was nothing at all to be seen, but a little light cinders
around the sides, but in the coffin that had the books,
they were found as fresh as if they had been but newly
written, being written on parchment, and covered over
with watch-candles of wax, three or four-fold."
There is little in Bacon's writings which has not col-
lateral meanings ; and I therefore take this to be a hint
94 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
as to the means whereby the original books and manu-
scripts are to be preserved until that day has arrived when
they could be safely published; and be safe from that
"malignity of sects" which he so much dreaded, and of
which his own age afforded such terrible examples. It
seems to me that when the deposit is discovered, the
priceless documents will be found imbedded in bees* wax
like Numa's parchments, and as fresh and fair as the day
they were deposited.
There are a multitude of hints in the Plays and Son-
nets of Shakespeare all pointing to a time when a revela-
tion shall be made and justice done to the great poet and
philosopher.
The Sonnets have long been a source of perplexity to
the critics. They are full of mysteries. Several books
and pamphlets have been written recently to show that
many of them are addressed to his own genius — his inner
spirit — his poetical gift — his muse.
"One of these men is genius to the other." (Com.
Ers. V. L.)
It is my belief they are full of a "word cipher," and
that in them reference is made to his own name "Bacon"
and the name of "Shakespeare."
We have (Sonnet CXXXVII.)
"If eyes, corrupt by over-partial looks,
Be anchored in the bay where all men ride."
This gives us the first syllable of "Bacon." The last
syllable is found in Sonnet CVII :
"Not mine own fears, nor the prophetic soul
Of the wide world, dreaming on things to come,
Can yet the lease pf my true Jove control,"
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 95
The a in "can" had, at that time, and even yet in Eng-
land, the broad English sound of o in "con."
In Sonnet CXXXV we have :
"Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy will,
And will to boot, and will in overplus ;
More than enough am I that vext thee still,
To thy sweet will making addition thus.
Wilt thou, whose will is large and spacious,
Not once vouchsafe to hide my tvill in thine?
Shall will in others seem right gracious,
And in my will no fair acceptance shine?
The sea, all water, yet receives rain still,
And in abundance addeth to his store ;
And thou being rich in zvill, add to thy will
One will of mine to make thy large will more.
Let no unkind, no fair beseechers kill;
Think all but one, and me in that one "Will."
The next Sonnet, (CXXXVI,) is as follows:
"If thy soul check thee that I come so near,
Swear to thy blind soul that I was thy Will,
And will, thy soul knows is admitted there ;
Thus far for love, my love-suit, sweet, fulfill.
Will will fulfill the treasure of thy love,
Ay, fill it full with wills, and my will one,
In things of great receipt with ease we prove ;
Among a number one is reckoned none.
Then in the number let me pass untold,
Though in thy store's account I one must be,
For nothing hold me, so it please thee hold
That nothing me, a something sweet to thee ;
Make but my name thy love that still
And then thou lovest me — for 1117 name is Will"
96 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
This recurrence of the word Will reminds me of the
scene in Act IV, sc. I of the "Merry Wives of Windsor,"
as it appears in the First Folio, (Comedies, p. 53) :
"Evans. Come hither, William] hold up your head;
come.
Mist. Page. Come on, Sirha ; hold up your head ; an-
swere your Master, be not afraid.
Ev. William, how many Numbers in Nownes?
William. Two.
Dame Quickley. Truely, I thought there had bin one
Number more, because they say od's-Nownes.
Ev. Peace, your tatlings. What is (Faire) Wil-
liam?
Will. Pulcher.
Quick. Powlcats? There are fairer things than
Powlcats, sure.
Ev. You are a very simplicity o' man; I pray you
peace. What is (Lapis) William f
Will A stone.
Ev. And what is a stone (William?)
Will. A Peeble.
Ev. No; it is Lapis; I pray you remember in your
praine.
Will. Lapis.
Eca. That is a good William; what is he (William)
that does lend articles?
Will. Articles are borrowed of the Pronoune; and
be thus declined. Singulariter nominative hie, hac, hoc.
Eva. Nominativo hig, hag, hog; pray you marke:
genitivo huius. Well ; what is your
Will. Accusative hinc.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 97
Eva. I pray you have your remembrance (childe)
Accusative king, hang, hog.
Quickly. Hang-hog, is latten for Bacon I warrant
you.
Eva. Leave your prables (o' man) What is the
Focative case (William) ?"
.
The play-writer used his bracketings and hyphenat-
ings as recklessly as the periods and dashes are employed
on the Shakspere tomb-stone. And so on to the end of
the scene. This is on page 53, and on page 56 we have
the word "shakes" :
"and shakes a chain,
In a most hideous and dreadful manner."
And on page 54 we have "peere" — "crying peere-out,
peere-out;" and thus we have "William Shakespeere,"
on three pages of the First Folio. And on the same page
(53) where all these "Williams" appear, we have the
word "Bacon " and on page 51 the word France occurs,
which, with the word is gives us France-is Bacon.
And on page 53 of the Comedies, in the First Folio, we
find the. word "Bacon"; and on page 53 of the Histories,
in same, we again find the word "Bacon-" and in each
case "Bacon" stands on the page at the number produced
by multiplying the number of the page by the number of
the italicized words on the first column of the page, in the
one case less the bracketed words and in the other case
counting the double words like "High-ho," as one word
each!
And in the same way that, near this repetition of the
word "William/' in the Merry Wives, we found the
1)8 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
words shakes and peere, so in the sonnets where Will oc-
curs so often, we have the words Shake and spheres, thus :
"And each, though enemies of cither's reign,
Do in consent shake hands to torture me."
Sonnet XXVIII.
"How have mine eyes out of their spheres been fitted,
In the distraction of this madding fever."
Sonnet XVIX.
And again:
"Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May."
Sonnet XVIII.
"Then should I spur, though mounted on the wind."
Sonnet LI.
"That time of year thou mays't in me behold
When yellow leaves, or few or none do hang
Upon those boughs that shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs where late the sweet birds sang."
Sonnet LXXIII.
When we turn to the "Lover's Complaint" which was
published with the Sonnets, in both the 1609 and the 1640
editions, we find these lines :
"Sometimes her levelled eyes their carriage ride,
As they did battery to the spheres intend."
I would suggest that the sceptical take some of the
poems of the present age and see in how many of them
they can find the words shake and spheres and shake and
spur.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 99
There were 21,000 words in the Shakespeare vocabu-
lary, and all words do not occur in all writings ! And
there are some in the Dictionary that are not used in cur-
rent literature probably once in a century !
I found the word Jack employed in the Plays to repre-
sent the first syllable of the play-actor's name, which, as
the signatures to his will show was not Shakespeare, but
Shak-spere; and the same thing occurs in the Sonnets :
"Do I envy those jacks, that nimble leap
To kiss the tender inward of thy hand."
Sonnet CXXVIII.
The word occurs twice in this sonnet.
"The bloody spur cannot provoke him on
That sometimes anger thrusts into his hide/'
Sonnet L.
I think I even find the name of Bacon's home, Saint
Albans, in the Sonnets, cunningly disguised as "Saint
All-bonds;" thus:
"Tempteth my better angel from my side,
And would corrupt my saint to be a devil.
Sonnet CXLIV.
"Where art thou, Muse, that thou forget'st so long
To speak of that which gives thee all thy might ?"
Sonnet C.
"The charter of thy worth gives thee releasing;
My bonds in thee are all determinate."
Sonnet LXXXVII.
100 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
In fact we can even obtain glimpses of what the cipher
story in the Sonnets refers to. If the reader will turn
to Sonnet CXXXIII and CXXXIV, he will find that al-
though there is in the text no reference to imprisonment
for debt, (which Bacon underwent two or three times),
yet we have in the short space of these two continuous
sonnets, the following words — confessed, — bond, — en-
grossed, — mortgage, — statute, — covetous, — usur-
er, — bind, — surety, — three-fold-forfeit, — sue a
friend — came debtor for my sake, — my friend — he
pays the whole — prison, — steel — ward — guard, — gaol,
— bail, — etc.
It is certainly astonishing to find such a concatenation
of significant words in two poems, of twenty-eight lines
in all ! When Francis Bacon was imprisoned for debt,
by a Jew, the play of "Shylock" appeared the same year ;
and Bacon was released by his brother Anthony going
11 surely'' for him; and he was in the habit of lovingly
alluding to Anthony as his "comforte," and in one of the
two sonnets where most of these words are found
(XXXIV.) we find these words:
"Myself I'll forfeit, so that other mine
Thou wilt restore, to be my comfort still."
And here I would note a curious fact confirmatory of
the theory that there is a cipher in the Sonnets.
The Shakespeare Plays were, many of them, first put
forth in small quarto editions, with the cipher in them;
but inasmuch as the cipher depended upon the pagination
of a contemplated Folio, which was not published until
after the death of Shakspere and Queen Elizabeth and
THE LIBRARY
RESURRECTION COLLEGE
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 101
Cecil, it would have been impossible for the most acute
decipherer, at the instance of Bacon's enemies, to have
worked out the inner story and brought his head to the
block.
In the same way we find that when the Sonnets were
first published in 1609 they were in such an order that
no amount of arithmetical work could have obtained a
clue to the cipher rule.
There appeared in 1599 a poem called "The Passionate
Pilgrim," "by W. Shakespeare," containing a large num-
ber of Sonnets ; and in 1640 a new edition of the Sonnets
was put forth, printed by Cotes, the printer of the 2nd
Folio of the Plays, of which we shall learn more here-
after, in which the whole arrangement of the Sonnets, in
the first edition, was departed from, and eighteen of the
Sonnets of the "Passionate Pilgrim" were interspersed
among the originals in a very quaint and curious fash-
ion, without coherence or apparent meaning.
These, without doubt, dove-tailed into the others, so as
to furnish the words which could not have been safely
put forth in 1609.
For instance I noticed, in reading the first edition, in
Sonnet LIII these lines :
"Describe Adonis and the counterfeit
Is poorly imitated after you."
Here — I said to myself — is a reference to the poem of
"Venus and Adonis," "the first heir," it is alleged, of
Shakspere's "invention." But I searched the 1609 edi-
tion in vain for the word "Venus." When, however, I
turned to the edition of 1640, there I found the IX Sonnet
of the "Passionate Pilgrim," embedded with two others,
10'J Till- CMIMH-K IN T11K SONNKTS.
between the 42d and 44th sonnets of the 1609 edition;
and in it:
"Venus with Adonis sitting by her,
Under a myrtle shade began to woo him."
I thought I also saw references, in the Sonnets, of the
1609 edition, to the fact that some deposit, like that of
King Nunia had been made, or was intended to be made,
of papers, covered with the "wax of watch-candles," (the
candles which were placed around the bier of the dead).
We found in Sonnet LXI :
"For thee watch I, whilst thou dost wake elsewhere
From me far off, with others all too near."
Here the rhythm is violated to get the word in, in a
certain order.
In Sonnet XXI we have :
"And then, believe rne, my love is as fair
As any mother's child, though not as bright
As those gold candles fixed in heaven's air."
All this seems to be a struggle; the thoughts and \\onls
being forced to get in the word "candles"
But I searched in vain, until I turned to the edition of
1640, and there I found, in that which had been originally
the 5th Sonnet of the "Passionate Pilgrim," these words :•
"Fair is my love, but not as fair as fickle ;
Mild as a dove, but neither true nor trusty ;
Brighter than glass, and yet. as glass is, brittle;
Softer than wa.r, and yet, as iron, rusty."
Here we have UWOJT," (of) "watch candles."
THE CIIMIKK IN Til K SONNKTS. 103
And we also find scattered among the Sonnets these
lines :
"If thou survive my well-contented day,
When that churl, Death, my bones with dust shall
cover."
Sonnet XXXII.
This gives us : Cover them with the wax of watch
candles.
"But things removed that hidden in thee lie!
Thou art the grave where buried love doth lie."
Sonnet XXXI.
"The age to come would say this poet lies,
Such heavenly touches ne'er touched earthly faces
So should my papers, yellowed with their age,
Be scorned, like old men, of less truth than tongue."
Sonnet XVI I.
"So is the time that keeps you, as my chest,
Or as the wardrohe which the rohe doth hide."
Sonnet LI I.
"Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea.
But sad mortality o'ersways their power, * * *
O, how shall summer's honey-breath hold out
Against the wreckful siege of battering days,
When rocks impregnable are not so stout
Nor gates of steel so strong but time decays ?
O fearful meditation! where, alack!
Shall Time's best jezvel from Time's chest lie hid?
Sonnet LXV.
104 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
"My name be buried where my body is."
Sonnet LXXII.
"Why write I still all one, ever the same,
And keep invention in a noted weed,
That every word doth almost tell my name,
Showing their birth, and where they did proceed ?"
Sonnet LXXVI.
I.-*-,'
And note again those lines : (Sonnet LXXVI.)
"Why write I still all one, ever the same,
And keep invention in a noted weed;"
and compare them with the language of Bacon's prayer,
written at the time of his downfall :
"The state and bread of the poor and oppressed have
been precious in mine eyes; I have hated all cruelty and
hardness of heart; I have, though in a despised weed,
procured the good of all men."
In Sonnet XXXII we have :
"Compare them with the bettering of the time."
And again in Sonnet LXXXII :
"Some fresher stamp of the time-bettering days."
And Bacon says in his letter to King James, Oct. 19,
1620:
"This work (the Novnm Organum) is for the better-
ing of men's bread and wine!'
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 105
There is a very curious word : — "misprision." It is
a law term. The lawyers speak of "misprision of trea-
son"; "misprision of felony." It means "a neglect or
light account of treason, by not revealing it when one has
a bare knowledge of it." It is a singular word to find
in a sonnet — and especially in a sonnet written by a play-
actor, and not a lawyer. Yet here it is, dragged in, "neck
and heels," in awkward fashion, and with it the word
"treason."
»
"Thyself thou gavest, thy own worth then not
knowing,
Or me, to whom thou gavest it, else mistaking;
So thy great gift, upon misprision growing,
Come home again, on better judgment making."
Sonnet LXXXVII.
If any one can make any sense of this it is more than I
can do.
But here is the complement of it :
"Love is too young to know what conscience is ;
Yet who knows not, conscience is born of love?
Then gentle cheater, urge not my amiss,
Lest guilty of my faults thy sweet self prove.
For thou betraying me, I do betray
My nobler part to my gross body's treason."
Sonnet CLI.
Here we have the significant words : — guilty, mispris-
ion, gross, treason, prove, betray, betraying, body's.
And here, too, are other significant words :
106 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
"Anon permit the basest clouds to ride
With ugly rack on his celestial face."
Sonnet XXXIII.
The rack was an instrument of torture. And then we
have :
"Thine eyes I love and they, as pitying me,
Knowing thy heart torments me with disdain."
Sonnet CXXXII.
Here the necessities of the cipher over-came the pro-
prieties even of grammar. The word should be torment.
And we find also the name of "Spencer" and "Dow-
land" introduced in these seemingly impersonal love son-
nets. They are imported into the 1640 edition from the
"Passionate Pilgrim," Sonnet VI :
"If music and sweet poetry agree,
As they must needs, the sister and the brother,
Then must the love be great 'twixt thee and me,
Because thou lovest the one and I the other.
Dowland to thee is dear, whose heavenly touch
Upon the lute doth ravish human sense ;
Spencer to me, whose deep conceit is such,
As, passing all conceit, needs no defence."
We argued a little while ago that the cipher story re-
ferred to Bacon's imprisonment for debt and his rescue by
his brother, Anthony, who paid the claim. But in the
1609 edition the word "brother" did not appear. We
sought for it in vain. It was a difficult word to introduce
into a sonnet. But see how cunningly it is brought into
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 107
the one just quoted, which became the twenty-sixth in
the edition of 1640.
His mother and father are alluded to in two or three
of the sonnets.
Queen Elizabeth is, I think, repeatedly referred 'to in
the cipher story. The words : "her grace, graces, queen,
monarch, reign, tyrant, tyrannous, etc., are scattered all
over the sonnets.
The enemies of good Queen Bess charged that Henry
VIII.'s divorce from Queen Katharine was illegal, and
hence that he was never married to Anne Boleyn; and
consequently Elizabeth was denounced by her enemies as
a bastard. And hence we find that word bastard recur-
ing repeatedly, in these sonnets ; written by one who had
been kept poor and powerless as long as she lived.
"Thus is his cheek the map of days outworn,
When beauty lived and died as flowers do now,
Before these bastard signs of fair were born."
Sonnet LXVIII.
"If my dear love were but the child of state
It might for fortune's bastard be unfathered."
Sonnet CXXIV.
"And now is black beauty's successive heir,
And beauty slandered with a bastard shame."
Sonnet CXXVII.
It was charged by Elizabeth's enemies that she did not
marry because she was incapable of having an heir. And
the word which expressed that condition repeatedly oc-
curs in the Sonnets :
108 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
"And barren rage of death's eternal cold."
Sonnet XIII.
"Why is my verse so barren of new pride?"
Sonnet LXXVI.
"With means more blessed than my barren rhyme."
Sonnet XVI.
We find the poet, despite these self-depreciatory words,
just quoted, elsewhere declaring:
"And tongues to be your being shall rehearse,
When all the breathers of this world are dead :
So shalt thou live, such power has my pen,
Where breath most breathes, — even in the mouths
of men."
Sonnet LXXXI.
This surely could not have been a "barren rhyme ;" and
so the word "barren" was, we take it, forced into the text.
We find Bacon's poverty alluded to as well as his im-
prisonment for debt:
"Alack ! what poverty my Muse brings forth !"
Sonnet CIII.
And his Essays are spoken of in the inner story as well
as the Venus and Adonis.
"And vast essays proved thee my best of love."
Sonnet CX.
Bacon claims elsewhere that "essays" were but newly
invented in that age, and Montaigne is called "the fa-
ther" of them.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 109
And with the help of the sonnets, imported into the
1640 edition from the "Passionate Pilgrim," we have an-
other use of the word Bacon:
"Ah, that I had my lady at this bay
To kiss and clip me till I ran away."
P. P. IX.
"Thy looks with me thy heart in other place :
For there can live no hatred in thine eye."
Sonnet XCIII.
The world has been unable to account for the fact that
the successful actor of Stratford, who had '"bought a
Lordship in the country," and applied for a coat of arms
to make his father "a gentleman," should, seven years
before his death, publish, or permit without protest, the
publication of a book of Sonnets, with his name on the
title-leaf, in which he lays bare his shameful amours with
some woman who had
"Robbed others' beds' revenues of their rents."
Sonnet CXIII.
and who was "the wide world's common place," — with
even worse suggestions. But if these Sonnets were nev-
er written by Shakspere — perhaps never seen by him — the
case is different. Then the real author when the move-
ment of the cipher piled a lot of words in a group, in a
small space, could fashion around them a poem, which
was not autobiographical, except so far as the cipher
story, within it, forced it to be such. We saw an exam-
ple of this in the two sonnets where his imprisonment for
debt is referred to.
110 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
Bacon, after the downfall of Essex, was charged with
ingratitude and treachery, and the partisans of the Earl
threatened his life. He wrote to the Queen in 1599:
"My life has been threatened, and my name libeled,
which I count an honor."
He also wrote to Lord Howard :
"For my part I have deserved better than to have my
name objected to envy, or my life to a ruffian's violence."
And this trouble seems to be alluded to in Sonnet
LXXIV:
"So then thou hast but lost the dregs of life,
The prey of worms, my body being dead;
The coward conquest of a wretch's knife"
And in Sonnet XXXVI. we have Bacon's lamentation
that his great plays are divorced from himself, and that
he cannot claim them, at least in that generation :
"Let me confess that we two must be twain,
Although our undivided loves are one.
So shall those blots that do with me remain,
Without thy help, by me be borne alone.
In our two loves there is but one respect,
Though in our lives a separable spite,
Which, though it alter not love's sole effect,
Yet doth it steal sweet hours from love's delight.
/ may not evermore acknowledge thee}
Lest my bewailed guilt should do thee shame;
Nor thou with public kindness honor me,
Unless thou take that honor from thy name ;
But do not so ; I love thee in such sort,
As thou being mine, mine is thy good report."
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
Ill
It seems to me this is all very plain. Bacon speaks
elsewhere of other writings, which would do more credit
to his name than his acknowledged works. In this Son-
net he says, in effect, that he would be glad to acknowl-
edge his poetic productions but it must not be, — they
"must be twain." The blots upon his record, at that time
when he "did not care whether God called him or her
majesty;" that long period when he was without money
or lucrative position and was borrowing small sums of
one pound at a time, from his brother Anthony ; and was
thrown into prison occasionally by the usurers; these
shames, with his Essex troubles, ought not to attach to
the plays and poems. Neither could he acknowledge
their authorship without confessing that he had shared
with Shakspere the vile profits of the play-house, derived
from ruffians, pimps and 'prentices ; and such an acknowl-
edgement meant social ostracism and death. He could
nevermore acknowledge the works of his poetical genius,
because his "bewailed guilt," in these particulars "would
do them shame ;" and would rob them of their honor : —
"Unless thou take that honor from thy name."
That is from the name and honor of the plays.
And the coming together of a group of words, describ-
ing this dark period in the great poet's career, is given in
Sonnet XXIX, thus :
"When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
112 THE CIPHER' IN THE SONNETS.
Featured like him, like him with friends possessed ;
Desiring this man's art, and that man's scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least ;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, — and then my state,
(Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth), sings hymns at heaven's gate,
For thy sweet love remembered such wealth brings,
That then I scorn to change my state with kings."
I interpret this to mean that in his gloomy hours of
despondency and disappointment, over his failure to rise
in the state, he took joy and consolation in the greatness
of the works he had accomplished for posterity. He had
"Laid great bases for eternity."
Sonnet CXXV.
And Bacon says, (Touching a Holy War) :
"I resolved to spend my time wholly in writing, and to
put forth that poor talent, or half talent, or what it is,
that God hath given me, not, as heretofore, to particular
exchanges, but to banks or mounts of perpetuity, which
will not break."
This is the same thought that is in the Sonnet :
"Laid great bases for eternity."
There is no evidence that the man Shakspere "laid
great bases for eternity," or built up "banks or mounts
of perpetuity." He took no steps to secure the publica-
tion of his alleged plays, and one half of them had not
been printed at the time his will was drawn. And al-
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 113
though his sister's posterity continued in possession of
some of his Stratford property down to the beginning of
this century, no copy of any of the Folios or the Quartos
of the plays, bearing his name, has ever been traced home
to his family or even to his village.
The poet says, Sonnet CXIX :
"What potions have I drunk of Siren tears
Distilled from limbecs foul as hell within,
Applying fears to hopes and hopes to fears.
Still losing when I saw myself to win."
There was nothing in Shakspere's career to which these
words could be applied. He had risen from the place of
horse-holder and call-boy to wealth and dignity; and
was lending money and selling malt to his heart's con-
tent. When had he lost "when he hoped to win?"
And again:
"Tired with all these, for restful death I cry, —
As to behold desert a beggar born,
And needy nothing trimmed with jollity,
And purest faith unhappily forsworn,
And gilded honor shamefully misplaced,
And maiden virtue rudely strumpeted,
And right perfection wrongfully disgraced,
And strength by limping sway disabled,
And art made tongue-tied by authority,
And folly (doctor-like) controlling skill,
And captive good attending Captain ill;
Tired of all these, from these would I be gone,
Save that to die I leave my love alone."
114 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
All these are the lamentations of a great man, — a pub-
lic man. He grieves "to behold desert a beggar born."
Bacon was himself born with a very limited fortune. In
the case of his cousin Cecil, the hunchback original, as I
believe, of the character in the play of Richard III, he
saw "gilded honor shamefully misplaced." In the Queen
he saw "maiden virtue rudely strumpeted ;" and "strength
by limping sway (Cecil) disabled;" and art and philos-
ophy "made tongue-tied" by the despotism of a rude and
bigoted age.
These are the lamentations of a statesman — a man of
enlarged views and great purposes. These considera-
tions would scarcely have grieved the sensitive soul of
the man of Stratford who, in 1604, five years before these
Sonnets were published, sued Philip Rogers for two shil-
lings for money loaned him ; and prosecuted one Horneby,
as Richard Grant White says, "for the sake of imprison-
ing him and depriving him both of the power of paying
his debt, and supporting himself and family. * * *
We open our mouths for food and we break our teeth
against these stones."
There is much more that might be said upon this sub-
ject but I think I have established a strong probability
that the Sonnets contain a Cipher narrative, which like
the inscription on the tomb-stone, asserts the authorship
of these poems by Francis Bacon.
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 115
CHAPTER XX.
A Hidden Deposit.
All these considerations are intended to lead up to the
expression of my conviction that there is, somewhere in
England, buried probably in the earth, or in a vault of
masonry, a great iron or brass coffer or coffers, like that
at "God's Gift College," London, which held the private
papers of Alleyn, the actor, — (Shakspere's contempor-
ary), and in which are contained, covered with "the wax
of watch-candles," a vast mass of books and papers, many
of them "yellowed with their age."
Included among these is probably an explanation of
the several ciphers, invented by Bacon, and inserted by
him in various works, many of which now "go about in
the names of others;" and probably also the private pa-
pers of his father, Sir Nicholas Bacon, and his grandfa-
ther, Sir Anthony Cooke, giving the secret history of the
reigns of Henry VIII., Edward VI., Queen Mary and
Queen Elizabeth ; and also many important documents of
his own time, which will settle some of the great historical
questions relating to that period. With these may be
also found Bacon's great library, which has mysteriously
disappeared.
It seems to me self-evident that, when Francis Bacon
had spent so many years of his life, laboriously inter-
116 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
weaving cipher narratives in the Shakespeare Plays, Son-
nets, etc., (to say nothing of other works which are now,
by many, attributed to him), he would not have left the
discovery of it all to the remote chance of some person or
persons, hundreds of years thereafter, happening upon
a few clue-words, which would lead up to a revelation
of what he had so cunningly concealed. The inner story
'must have been in his view equally important with the
outer vehicle, in which it was contained; and this being
the case he must have taken as much pains to preserve
the one as the other.
We are told that the printing of that great volume, —
the First Folio — cost a sum equivalent to five thousand
dollars today ; and one has only to notice the punctuation
to see the precision with which the work- was prepared.
But not satisfied with putting forth the First Folio, in
1623, some individual or society, nine years thereafter,
printed the second Folio, of 1632 ; and in 1664, forty-one
years after 1623, the Third Folio: — each of these being
as large and expensive as the First. And it is evident
that these three publications, which must have cost a
small fortune to print, were sent forth to preserve the
cipher; — because, in each one of the three, each page is a
duplicate of the same page in the 1623 Folio; beginning
and ending with the same words; and repeating even the
same apparent errors of pagination, spelling, bracketing
and hyphenation of the text!
Between the date of the First Folio and .that of the
Third a whole world of history had transpired. James
the First had died and Charles the First, his son, had
ascended the English throne; he had grossly misgovern-
ed the kingdom ; he had suppressed the parliament for
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 117
eleven years ; the Long Parliament was then called ; and
a great Civil War soon followed; the king was deposed
and lost his head, — (no great loss to him or the world) —
Cromwell became Protector of the realm ; he ruled from
1631 until his death in 1658; Charles II. came to the
throne in 1660; the profligate cavaliers succeeded the
honest but fanatical Puritans ; the stage-plays which had
been driven out by the religious enthusiasts, amid a whirl-
wind of opprobrium, came back triumphantly and more
debauched and disreputable than ever. And yet, through
all these vast changes, some association, — for such a work
could hardly have been entrusted to an individual life : —
(as the man who was forty in 1623 would have been
eighty-one in 1664) ; some association, I say, must have
continued in existence for forty-one years, (thirty-eight
years after Bacon's death) ; the members of which not
only knew that there was a cipher in the Shakespeare
Plays, whose perpetuation depended upon the reproduc-
tion of the pagination and even the apparent typograph-
ical errors of the First Folio, but they must also have
been possessed of the means to pay twice for the print-
ing of such a large volume, for there was not in that day
an extensive reading population to justify such an out-
lay.
If, therefore, all these pains and this cost were incurred
tQ, preserve the frame-work of the cipher, is it probable
that nothing was done to secure the future revelation of
the cipher narrative itself, without which the frame- work
was comparatively valueless? Who could have foreseen,
in the midst of the scramblings and contentions of cruel
and murderous castes and creeds, in 1623 and 1664, that
this great peaceful, critical age was to follow, which
118 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
would appreciate the Plays at something like their true
value; and scan them with microscopic observation, until
they stumbled upon the evidences which led up to the
thought that there was a cipher hidden in their text?
The existence of the cipher presupposes therefore the
existence of a hidden deposit ; and proves that some steps
must have been taken to provide for its revelation after
the lapse of a given number of years or centuries; and
that the same society to which this was entrusted also
published the Folios of 1632 and 1664; and possibly may
also have secured the printing of those curious photo-
lithographic fac-similes of the First Folio, which have
appeared in our own day !
And we find many hints of this future revelation in
the Sonnets and the Plays. In Sonnet LV we find the
following :
"Not marble, nor the gilded monuments
Of princes, shall outlive this powerful rhyme."
Observe the marvellous self-assertion of superiority
and immortality in this utterance! Could the man who
wrote it have disposed in his will of a "silver-gilt bowl/'
and finger rings and old clothes, and a "second best bed,"
and made no allusion to those plays which were to en-
dure, as he believed, if he was the author, to the end of
time? Could he have quietly gone to the grave, with all
his wealth, (for his income is said to have been equal to
$20,000 a year today), and have taken no steps to secure
their publication; for one-half of them, it is well known,
were not printed when he died, or for seven years there-
after ?
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 119
The Sonnet continues :
"But you shall shine more bright in these contents
Than unswept stone besmeared by sluttish time."
Here the "you," as we take it, refers to his muse, — his
genius, — his inner self.
"When wasteful wars shall statues overturn,
And broils root out the work of masonry^
Nor Mars his sword nor war's quick fire shall burn
The living record of your memory.
'Gainst death and all-oblivious enmity
Shall you pace forth; your praise shall still find room
Even in the eyes of all posterity,
That wear this world out to the ending doom.
So till the judgment that yourself arise,
You live in this, and dwell in lover's eyes."
If this means anything it means that the writer's work
is immortal; and when wars, (which had been common
in England for many centuries), shall "overturn statues"
and "root out the work of masonry," the "living record"
of the poet's genius should survive, and, against death,
"you," the "better part 'of me," shall "pace forth," liber-
ated from the "enmity" which had pursued him during his
life time, and sought to consign him to oblivion ; and
thenceforth his genius should live, even to the judgment
day, when the author himself should rise to be judged
with the rest of mankind.
And what was this "living record of his memory?"
Not the Sonnets; for, noble as some of them are, the
claim of immortality could scarcely be founded upon
them alone. Not the Plays, for they were not a "living
120 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
record," there is nothing "recorded" in them, unless it be
within the hidden cipher story. What then is meant?
Does it not mean that when statues were overthrown by
war, and masonry "rooted out," there would be found
the tremendous record of his life and work, and the his-
tory of his time; and thereupon his wonderful genius
would be recognized; it would "pace forth" — it would
take a new life; — it would step out before the wonder
and admiration of the world ; — and remain 'forever ; —
concentrating upon itself the attention of mankind, till
the "ending doom?"
If it does not mean this, what does it mean ? Would it
not have been,
"An expense of spirit in a waste of shame,"
to attribute all these extravagant promises of immortal-
ity, to some woman whose very name even is not given?
And how could the overthrowing of statues, and the
rooting out of masonry, by civil wars, release the "mem-
ory" of some female, — some lady-love ?" And what could
be the "record" — the "living record" of such a person?
And why should the destruction of statues and masonry
give "room," for the "praise" of such an unnamed per-
son, and why should mankind continue to praise her "to
the ending doom?" As he says in another Sonnet,
(LXXXI) :
"Your monument shall be my gentle verse,
Which eyes not yet created shall o'er-read ;
And tongues to be, your being shall rehearse,
When all the breathers of this world are dead ;
You still shall live, (such virtue hath my pen),
Where breath most breathes, — even in the mouths of
men."
THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS. 121
If this great poet really believed that all men, — for all
time to come, — for a thousand years, — for ten thousand
years, — would devote their surplus energies to the
"praise" of the physical charms of some poor piece of
flesh and blood, long ago dust, why, in Heaven's name,
did he not tell us who she was ? How can we praise for-
ever that which is as intangible and temporary as a breath
of summer air? And is there anything that mankind is
likely to "praise," to the consummation of all things, ex-
cept the loftiest and vastest manifestations of the human
mind and spirit? And if "wasteful wars," or any other
causes, do "overturn statues" and "root out the work of
masonry," and reveal to the world that Francis Bacon
was the greatest intellect of all time; that by a splendid
self-abnegation he has allowed his honors to rest for cen-
turies upon the heads of others, not only of his own na-
tion, but even of other countries,
("To him all scenes of Europe homage owe,")
and that the Shakespeare Plays, magnificent beyond all
the works of man, are a "cheveril glove," and when turn-
ed inside out prove that poetry and history are wedded
in immortal marriage, then will not the genius of Francis
Bacon "pace forth," "'gainst death and all oblivious en-
mity," and take possession of the world and hold it as
long as the earth endures ?
He was one of those men,
"Who have ta'en the giant world by the throat,
And thrown it, and made it swear to maintain
Their name and fame, at peril of its life."
122 THE CIPHER IN THE SONNETS.
The poet says:
" To see this age ! A sentence is but a cheveril glove
to a good wit : how quickly the wrong side may be turn-
ed outward!" (Twelfth Night, 3. i.)
And a play, with a history inside of it, is indeed a
"cheveril glove/' and when the cipher rule is known it
can be quickly turned inside out.
And this brings us to another point in our argument.
BOOK THREE.
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE. 125
CHAPTER XXL
"The Phoenix and the Turtle!'
Let the reader bear in mind what I have just said,
about "poetry and history wedded in immortal marriage,"
and then read the following verses, which, under the
title, — "The Phoenix and the Turtle," appeared in 1601,
among the additional poems of Chester's "Love's Mar-
tyr," with "Wm. Shakespeare's" name appended to them.
There has never been any question that they were written
by the author of the "Shakespeare Plays ;" they are pub-
lished in all the complete editions of his works.
"THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
Let the bird of loudest lay,
On the sole Arabian tree,
Herald sad and trumpet be,
To whose sound chaste wings obey.
But thou, shrieking harbinger,
Foul precurser of the fiend,
Augur of the fever's end,
To this troop come thou not near.
126 THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
From this session interdict
Every fowl of tyrant wing,
Save the eagle, f eather'd king :
Keep the obsequy so strict.
Let the priest, in surplice white,
That defunctive music can,
Be the death-divining swan,
Lest the requiem lack his right.
And thou, treble-dated crow,
That thy sable gender mak'st
With the breath thou giv'st and tak'st,
'Mongst our mourners shalt thou go.
Here the anthem doth commence:
Love and constancy is dead;
Phoenix and the turtle fled
In a mutual flame from hence.
So they lov'd, as love in twain
Had the essence but in one;
Two distincts, division none;
Number there in love was slain.
Hearts remote, yet not asunder;
Distance, and no space was seen
Twixt the turtle and his queen:
But in them it were a wonder.
So between them love did shine,
That the turtle saw his right
Flaming in the phoenix' sight:
Either was the other's mine.
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE. 127
Property was thus appall'd,
That the self was not the same ;
Single nature's double name,
Neither two nor one was call'd.
Reason in itself confounded,
Saw division grow together ;
To themselves yet either neither,
Simple were so well compounded.
That it cried, how true a twain
Seemeth this concordant one !
Love hath reason, reason none,
If what parts can so remain.
Whereupon it made this threne
To the phoenix and the dove,
Co-supremes and stars of love,
As chorus to their tragic scene.
THRENOS.
Beauty, truth, and rarity,
Grace in all simplicity,
Here inclos'd in cinders lie.
Death is now the phoenix' nest ;
And the turtle's loyal breast
To eternity doth rest,
Leaving no posterity :
'Twas not their infirmity,
It was married chastity.
128 THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
Truth may seem, but cannot be ;
Beauty brag, but 'tis not she ;
Truth and beauty buried be.
To this urn let those repair
That are either true or fair ;
For these dead birds sigh a prayer."
These verses are in some respects exquisitely beautiful ;
but no one has ever yet attempted to explain what they
mean. There is a mystery in them and around them ; and
we can see no reason why any mystery should surround
the writings of the successful play-actor and money-lend-
er. His life was a plain and simple progress from poverty
and obscurity to wealth and honor.
At the first blush one would say that these verses re-
late to some deceased married couple, and are intended to
be inscribed upon their tomb ; but there are many consid-
erations which forbid such conclusion.
If the woman is supposed to represent, in the poem,
as she usually does, the turtle-dove, the graceful, fem-
inine emblem of tender conjugal affection, why should the
husband stand for the phoenix?
What is the phoenix ?
We turn to the Cyclopaedia and read :
"Phoenix, — a mythical bird, living in Arabia, resem-
bling an eagle, with wings partly red and partly golden.
On arriving at the age of 500 years it built a funeral pile
of wood and aromatic gums, and, lighting it by the fan-
ning of its wings, was consumed to ashes, out of which
arose a new phoenix. The fathers of the church em-
ployed the myth to illustrate the resurrection ; and several
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
129
of the Roman emperors used it on coins to typify their
own apotheosis, or the return of the golden age under
their rule." (Amer. Cyclo. Vol. XIII, p. 457.)
If the "turtle" is the wife, why should this particular
husband be a phoenix?
But it appears, from the text, — strange to say, — that
it was the husband who was the dove and the wife the
phoenix ! And therefore the phoenix is to rise again from
her ashes while the dove will not.
"Death is now the phoenix5 nest ;
And the turtle's loyal breast
To eternity doth rest."
The "phoenix" made his nest of woods and gums, and
when he died, by fire, a new phoenix was born. When
was the new phoenix to rise, which is referred to in this
poem? Death was his "nest," and from Death there was
to be a resurrection !
What does it all mean ?
"So they loved, as love in twain
Had the essence been in one ;
Two distincts, division none :
Number there in love was slain."
It would be difficult to apply this language to a mortal
man and his wife.
"That, it cried, how true a twain
Seemeth this concordant one !
Love hath reason, reason none;
If what parts can so remain,"
130 THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
"Property was thus appalled,
That the self was not the same ;
Single nature's double name
Neither two nor one was called."
"Leaving no posterity : —
'Twas not their infirmity
It was married chastity."
There is something more here than an epitaph over hu-
man beings. If the "phoenix" represents the Christian
resurrection, why should the husband, the dove, not rise,
as well as the wife? And of what human couple could
it be said that they were called neither two nor one ?
What is there to which these words could be applied?
Suppose there is a cipher in the Shakespeare Plays,
then the internal story and the external dramas are so wo-
ven together, out of the same materials, that we may say
there are "two distincts, division none.3' We may say :
"Hearts remote, yet not asunder ;
Distance and no space was seen
'Twixt the turtle and his queen ;
But in them it were a wonder."
In other words there is a wide difference between the
purpose of the internal story and the meaning of the exter-
nal play — there was "distance and no space was seen."
"Reason in itself confounded,
Saw division grow together;
To themselves yet either — neither,
Simple were so well compounded."
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE. 131
Surely that is so when an external comedy may contain
an internal tragedy; or an external tragedy be the
cover for an internal comedy ; or when the dramatic
events of King John's reign may shelter a narration of
the court secrets of Queen Elizabeth's time.
"Either was the other's mine;"
for the play was made up of the cipher and the cipher
was made up of the play; and both were a "concordant
one."
And how fitly can these words be spoken of the great
dramas ?
"Beauty, truth, and rarity,
Grace in all simplicity,
Here enclosed in cinders lie.
Death is now the phoenix' nest;
And the turtle's loyal breast
To eternity doth rest.
Truth may seem, but cannot be;
Beauty brag but tis not she;
Truth and beauty buried be."
The external dramas are beauty; the internal narra-
tives are truth; they live together "well compounded,"
as a "concordant one; two distincts (with) division
none." The histories of the time may seem to record
the historical events of the time, but the real facts are
buried in cinders, in the grave of the poet and philoso-
pher; not to be made known until the "phoenix" rises,
and the cipher is revealed,
132 THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
"Love and constancy are dead,
Phcsnix and the turtle fled,
In a mutual flame from hence."
But one of these is a phoenix; and it will rise from
the "mutual flames" of death ; if it does not the Arabian
myth is in vain; it has no place here. The "phoenix"
implies a resurrection? What is it?
The turtle-dove, with its cooing voice, and its love for
the human race, (for in a "despised weed" he had
"sought the good of all men"), must take its chances of
mortality ; but the time will come when the internal his-
tory, the "truth," as contradistinguished from the
"beauty," will rise like a phoenix from its ashes — its
"cinders" — and on red and golden wings soar, eagle-
like, above the world.
And when will this resurrection be?
Even of this we seem to have a hint:
"And thou, treble-dated crow,
That thy sable-gender mak'st,
With the breath thou giv'st and takest,
'Mongst our mourners shalt thou go."
Has any one attempted to explain all this? What
is the "treble-dated crow?" And what is the sable-
gender" which the crow makes? And what nonsense
is this for the Stratford money-lender to write, between
his sellings of malt and bringings of actions in as-
sumpsit ?
We take it that the crow is the unknown future; the
dark years to come, — the blackness of obscurity; that
make their own sable-gender, with the breath they give
and take. The crow was believed, in Bacon's time, to
ID THE TURTLE.
183
live one hundred years. The "treble-dated crow" may
therefore signify the dark and uncertain future of three
hundred years, which are to pass before the "phooenix"
shall rise from its ashes, and the Truth be revealed to
live forever.
What more natural than that this "Threne" — this
"funeral song," — should be accompanied by an anxious-
looking-forward, by the poet, into the centuries that are
to come; and what more natural than to paint that
future as "the crow that flies in heaven's sweetest air"
—that "vexes the dove" — as the emblem of darkness.
Bacon died on the eve of the great religious and political
revolution which soon after swept over all the British
Islands. He had put this observation into the mouth of
Hamlet (V. i) :
"By the Lord, Horatio, this three years I have taken
note of it; the age is grown so picked, that the toe of
the peasant comes so near the heel of the courtier, he
galls his kibe."
The future was not plain to him. Smithfield still
smoked with the fires that devoured the bodies of her-
etics. Would the world grow worse or better? Would
it, as Bacon said, "make a bankrupt of books," and
wipe out the English tongue? Who could "look into
the seeds of time and say which grain would grow and
which would not?" And each century would make its
own sable gender, different from all others, out of its
own events, — its own deeds, — its own developments: —
"the breath thou giv'st and takest."
But would the "fever" end ? Would the fever of in-
tolerance and persecution and fanaticism and cruelty and
ignorance pass away? Who could tell?
134 THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
And into the dark mouth of this tomb of uncertainty
he consigned his treasure, — his
"Beauty, truth and rarity
And grace in all simplicity."
And note how all this connects with Sonnet . LXV,
already quoted :
"Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea,
But sad mortality o'ersways their power,
How with this rage shall beauty hold a plea,
Whose action is no stronger than a flower?
O, how shall summer's sunny breath hold out
Against the wreckful siege of battering days,
When rocks impregnable are not so stout,
Nor gates of steel so strong, but time decays?
O fearful meditation ! Where alack !
Shall Time's best jewel from Time's chest be hid."
Having created, by tremendous labor, a vast secret,
which could not reach its object without a future revela-
tion, a phoenix-like resurrection, the soul of the poet was
troubled, looking into the unknown ages, as to whether
or not they would devour the trust committed to them,
or hold it up in glory before the world.
These thoughts form the undercurrent of the Sonnets :
"When I have seen such interchange of state,
Or state itself confounded to decay;
Ruin hath taught me thus to ruminate
That Time will come and steal my love away.
This thought is as a death, which cannot choose
But weep to have that which it fears to lose."
Sonnet LXIV.
THE PHOENIX AND THE TURTLE.
:My name be buried where my body is"-
135
What is his "name?" Not his mere cognomen, but
his whole vast reputation — his deeds — his life.
A barbaric age might, in the coming centuries, toss
his jewels to the swine; or, when his genius at last
"paced forth" from the demolished masonry, it might
step into a world glorious with peace and culture and
the blessed lights of God's tremendous purposes.
And if this be not the true interpretation of this strange
poem, who will supply us with its meaning?
It must have a meaning. And yet none is apparent
upon its surface.
What did the Stratford man mean, (if he wrote it,)
by putting forth such a mystery, with no key in his life,
or his life's deeds, for its unravelment?
What was his ''phoenix" and "turtle"?
How could the "overturning of statues" and "the root-
ing out of masonry" affect him?
Somyg of his fcadowcs then* haft met,
Arid not thvary King. IhauecwoBoyft*
Seeke'Pwrand thy fe&abouttheFicld:
But feeing* tnoii faU'ftS wiftj luckily,
I will affaythee : fo defend thy telfc*
Dne. ifouechon art another counterfeit:
And yet inf^ig tbou bear'ft thee- like a King t
But mine I ata&rethou art,whoerethou be,
The FirftfPartofK&zHenry the Fourth.
. £nter Pratt.
tritt. Hold t pftey head vifcScot.or thottartlifce
jKeuerwholdiivBa£atne:i;he,5piuts * (
TOfcjaKant Shah faffordtf fat >3xe in my Arraesj
c It is the Prince^ Wales that threatens thce,
Wnb neuer promfotb,bathe mcanei topay. , /'£" j
'
*&•!*&
Cheerely My Lord: howlwe'i yourGrace?
fichelM Gwfcj hath for fueceur fent,
fo hath (lifton : Iltto Clifian ftraighs,
'.ing, Stay,and breach awhile.
Thou haft "daytftl thy loft opinion,
/$Q And fliew'd thougiak'ft fome tender of my Ufa
In this faire reTcue thou haft brought to race*
Prwr. Oheauffi, they did mtioornucninhtry,
Thateaerfaidlhearknedtoyofflrdeath. -'
Iftt were fo.Imighthtue Union?
The infulting haiy£of Doigfo oi/eVyou^
Which woujd haue bene as fpeedy in your end,
As all thepoyfonousPotioafin th| world,
And fau'd tfii Treacherous labour of you* Sonne.
K. Make vp to (1,ft*»J\t to Sir\k^£ Gafa. Zxii
^ 66
Hot. iflmiftaten
Prti. TtH^T»Vfta*rfIwou!ddetry-mynaine,
1 4fcj '* Hat. My name is Hsrrtt Ferae. fi
Prw.Why flien I tej very Taliafii rebel of that name.
I am the Prince of ^^ei.and tbinke not f*yt
To (hare with me wgujry any mo re ; /^)
Two Surrci keepc nduhtir motion into Sphere,
fcfor can one England brookc a double jeigoe,
Of ff»»7p«rirt,aodthe Prince of Water.
A Hat. Not ftiilm Jfrnrp, for the hour e is COOK
To cod the orowf A; and would-toheauen,
Thy nameulARJfes, WIJTP now at greitas mw».
Pmrw. lie ma«ugrruir,ctel part frofjn thee/
Aad all tn« budding HorioJfejthyCreft,
He crop,to oake t Garland tq?my hod, '
;, H«*. 1 evaao fanger brooke thy Vsnhie. F»f tr.
Boy es play htew>I can tell you.
. c
Niyyoa fliallfiodeno
^
*s ffkfwen dead.
r«i. Oh ^njcuhbu haft rob'd me of my yooth r
cethclolftc "
Then'tWfe prouflTi ties t hoc
I better btookel
:ofbri
ifklrft,
hdl wyy ttfete,
They wound my thoghu wcrfyrien the fword rny fleft:
But thouglifs the flatieof LifejMftiiie,Timc» fooic;
And Time, that takei funiey crpit^vi/orid,
Mnft haue a flop* O, I could Propnefi?. ^.
But tb.at the Earih,and the cold hinflof dewn,
Ivp on my Tongue : No Ptrty,t\\au art duft
3nd food for. .
^fy«» Poi Wotmc*>braue/'r»T;JFarewel1gre«!ie«rt:
I'l- wtau'd A tnbjtion ,how «och «n thou (hrunke?
iWHenihatchisol^edidcoatajneaipirit,
igdomefor it was too final! a bound :
: now twp pacer of the vilcft Eartht
)oome encflgb.This Earth that bearcs the dearly
Bearcs notauiiej^ftoufraGcntlemaD,
Jfthouwer'tfenfioleofcurtefie, •
j (Bculd not make fo great a (hew ofZeale.
let rnv&nours hide thy mangled face,
euenjjff thybehalfe,llethankemy felfe
Fordoing tnefe tay^e Rites of""
Adieu,and takethy'praife witri ..
Thy ignomy fleepe with thee inline gr
But not remembred in thy Epu
What? Old Acquaintance? C«j
Keepe in a little life?Poore la<
not all this flefli
I could haue bettet fpaPd a better rn^o.
Dj 1 (hould haue a heauy mifle of thec^1/
if I were much in loue with Vanity .
Death hathflo? ftwcke fo fat a Deere ico dajr,
Though many deajcr in thisJjloody Fray ; -'
Imbowell'd will ffkethee by and byU „ >
Tillthen,in blood,by Noble^«-^ Jy2°
Imboweird?lfthouimboweil tneetb
giue ySb leaue to powderme,and cat me too to
^Twa frme to counterfer, or that hone Termagant !
"ad paid tne fcot and loitoo.Countct/ei t?I aning coua^
cc?Teit;todye,istobeacourit^it, forTecli oui Utc
counterfeit ofaman.wbohathRot thclifeof aman : But
to countertett dwRg^-wTOi a rnifrthereby liu«h,is to bs
nocounterfeit.btvrthetfQeandperfei^imageof life in*
deede. Thcbetj^partofValottr.isDifcrenoni in ikl
Rvliich bet terj>j£ I haue faued my life. I am affrside ol
tfiisGun-powde7r<rC7 though he be dead. How if h«
Tntwd counterfeit too, anduft? I «n afraid hee would
prdutihebetter counterfeit:thereforclle make him turf:
yea.a^llc fweare 1 kill'd him, Why mayaat heeTife »
well asl : Nothing confutes me but eyes^ud nobodie
fee* mc.Therefore Hrra^with a new woumnjfo cur thigh
come you along me. "TaksiHotfiumtntiuiulg.
EftiT FrinCI undJdujfLancaftcr.
frit. Come Brother Ifbii^m brauely haft ihou fieflit
try Maiden fwordyo
Itfm. B«foft,whe
Did you nor tell me «>i» Firman was d ead ?
and bleeding on the ground: Art thou alkit ?
" : that playes vporrour cy c-figk ?
-•e.we wiUnot truft our eyes
caress Tij^aruot what thou feern'r).
:hat*< cmSrfie ; I am not a double man : bat
e F4^f^,then ami a hckti : Thfl-e is fir-
will do me any Hooor.fo: if IfSjet hh»
rhimfelfe. llookYtobeeur^Etrleef
7,Pmj I kitl'd my felre, and f«w tnec dead.
._ ..thou?J.otd,tord,bowtbe worldisgiug
co Lfuig?! grauntyoul wasdowne^andcut ofBreatBf
and (oSvas he, but we rofe both at nupQant.anij fought
along houreby ShrewJjurie clocke.jrl may beebeke-
ucd.fo :if not Jet thennn|t£}puld reward Valour,bearc
thennnevponthzirov^rKnos. Ilctake'r cnmy death
I gauehirn^his wound in theThigh : if theman rferei-
liue.and would dfty it, I would make himcatea ptece
Sfroyrword1. / 50
lohn* This is the ftrarguft Tale th it e'rfUieard.
Prin. Thlj is ti:c ura. jjeft I ellov. yorotn« /»£•'. •
Come
*2
IOC
/$c
too
*&
Sec
?*
I
yoo
jSo
&*>
ttc
St*
,,mg y.our luggage Nobly on your backe •
;0r hr*E3ft>if a lye may do thee grace,
[le giiu it with thchappieft trarraes I hiue.
A $* *sf Rttr<*t u [funded.
lH5l rutrpersfound Rcuyt.thc day it ours :
Come Brother, lei's to tnfJ^gheft of the field,
fofcewhat Friends are liiung,whoarcdead. Exeunt
F^l. lie follow as they fay, for Reward. Bee chat re-
w»ds ire,! 'Ciucn re ward him^ If loo^row grca: again,
[lc grow Icffe? For IJepurgc, andlealie Sacke. andliue
ilcanly.aso Nobienwnfhooiijdo. (TO Exit
100
/Sc
The HrftTartofKjngHenythe Fourth.
Sc^na, Ouwta.
The "Trumpr; i feitid.
Euttr tbe.Ki*gt Prince of&ales, Lord lobn tfLtnca&er,
£*rle eftreflmtrlamt, with Wornfter &
V err. en PnfoHcrt,
King. Thut euer did Rebellion finVJe Rebuke,
Ill-fpirttedWorccfter,did«5rKit,fcnd Grace,
Pardon ,and tearmes ofLouctoaff of you i
Andu'ould'ft ihou turne our ofKE^roiurary J
MlTuTe the tenor of thjjjKinfrmritfrufT ?
Thftc Knight* vpon our garty flame today,
ANob!eEaile,and rrfahy? creatureelfe,
Had Ueene aliue this houre*^
If likesfehrifrian then had ll truly tjgrne
Betwivt out Armies, true Intelligence.
War. What I hauc done, my fa*ety y rg d me to.
And I emfaraM ibis fortune patiently,
SincMioc to &c fcuoydcd, it ialc on rneeA
King. 8ea?i WorceQer to deat h,u3 Vtnu, too >
Other Offenders we «viU paufcvpoa, A
fjcitW*a$tr*iJiVtr
UA
c Noble Scot Lord Dftnlu, when bee (aw
^The ton tin: of the day quite nun'd from him, A
The Noble ^rc; (Uine.«nd alibis men,
Vpbn the fo^t ol&arc , fled with lf» rcfl ;
And falling from a hill, ha wai fo brui&'d
That the purfuers tooke mm. Ayoy Teoc
The DtmgUs is. and I bcfcftb y!wr Grace,
Imay dirpofeofhim.
King. With all my I
Pri*. Then Brett
To you this honourable I
.Go to tbe DmrUi.wA de
(hall belong:
him
£Vp to his pleafuie, r wfomlcffc and free :
His Valour fhewne vglnejur Grefif to day,
Hath taught vs how tffcMnlh fu^hi^h deeds,
Eucn in the bof ome ot'oifrAdunfiric*.
KiHfy Then this remaines : that we diuide our Power.
You Son^e /oha.tnd my Cou% VVeftmerland
TowardrYorke {hall bend you. with yau^decreft fpeed
To meet Northumbei land.ana the Prelate Sfreepc,
Who(as we heatejare bufily tn Armes.A
My Selfe, and yTSffSonnc Ugrj will toward* Wales,
To fight with Gtfmknw.apn jjseEarJc of March.
Rebellion in this Land (hffi kjfeln* way,
>g the Checke of fuch another day :
(uuethis Brfnefie fo faire is dene,
rsiKKleauetillallourownebewonrK* Exeunt.
FINIS.
The Second Part of Henry the Fourth,
Containing his Death : and the Coronation
of King Henry the Fift.
74-
I N D V C T I O N,
irourEafC-s ;For wnivSof you will flop
[ ' [ rjpventof Hear rogjwlicn'loiid Rmnir fpeakes?
t \ , from the Orient, to the drooping Weft
(MjJiingibc windc my Polt-horfe) ftill vnfold
The A6b comftenccdon'thLs Bill of^arth.
Vpon myTorfgVc, con<tnuall SJan I^ride>.
The UhUh. in eu:ryiiutguage, I pronounce,
fluffing trre Earcs of the'rn with falfe Reports :
ifpeakccftPeacc, while couertEnmstie
Vnder the frfftle afSafety)-A'ountts the.World :
1 who but Rumour, who but oncly I o .
Makcfearfull M;ifters,and prepat'd Defence,
'^hil'ft the bigge yeare, fwolne with fomCbtbcr griefes,
is th^ighc with chikle, by the fterne Tyrant, Wan«,
^ndsn7fuch matter? Rjuxqw , is a Pipe
jlowne by Suunifes, klouhes, Cor^ic^ures;
k.nd of fo eafie, and h pi line a ftop,
f h tt the blunt Monftcr, with vncounted heads,
The Rill difcofdant, waucring Multuu^e,
gunplay vpon it. But what ncede limit
My well-knownc Body tgg&jiathorrnze
/SK Atnong my houfltold ? Why is Rttmeur heere?
before King //>r«Ari&ory,
> in a bloodie ficUhy SHrewsburie
H«h beaten downe yqng ffeiJptttre>**d%At TfOOpe$>
Qncnching the flame of bolt! Rebellion,
i with the Rebels blood. ButwhSfmeanel
J: fo true at firft ?My Office is
abroad, that Harrj iJMoriHoiitb fell
e Wrath of NoHc Httftmrrei Sword: .
And th»r. the King, before the 'Dotcglat Rage.
Stoop'^is Annointcd head, as low as death?
This haue I runoin'd through the pcafant-Townes,
B«wec(W the Royall Ficld^Tshrewsburie,
^is Woroic-catM-Hole of ragged Stone,
Where Hoiftttrrti FaWr, old Northumberland^
Lyes crafty fickc. ThrPoHcs come tyring oru
3t» man of them brings other newes *»
hjy haue learn .1 of Me. • From R*mo«rt Tongues,
Thf? hrioa fmooth-Comfons-falfc, vt orfe then True-
m>ngs. 2 ffU £***'
ScenaSecunda.
L&er. Whokeepet the Gate hetreho*?
VVhereisthcEaJc?
for. What.flQllIfayya>L*re>
,£*r. Tell thitHi the Earle);
That the Lotd.$*rtle>fe doth attend him heere.
P«r. His LJJr^ftjp is walk'ilforth into the O^chlfi,
Pleafe it y outHmor, knocke but afcthe Gate,
And he himfelfe
/o
L.'Btr. Hcete comes the Earle.
Ncr. What newes Lord B*rMfc> Eu'ry tninu:e now
Shouldjpctlic Father of fome Stratagem; ^
The Times are wilder Contention (lite a Horfe
Full of high Feeding) madly hath b;okc loofe,
And bcaresdowne all before luro.
L.B*r. NoblJEarle,^
J bring you certaine newes from Shrewsbury.
Nar. Good,andhcauV\vi!l.
L.Em. As good as heart can wifi»:/o
The King is almoft wounded to the deatj^:
Arj^^n the Fortune of my Lord your Some,
Prince /4*g"'> ilaine out-right : and both the Bluett
KilWby t^hand of Doiig/iw^yong Prince /«&»,
And Weumerland, and StafKSro, fled the Field.
And Harrit^oameath's BraWnt (the Hulkc Sit IM)
Is prifonertoyourSonne. O,fuchaDay.
(So fought/lb follow'd, and fo fairely wonne)
Came not, till new, to digniHe the-T, ones
Since Ctf*n Forunei.
N*r. HowistMdertu'd?
Sa w you the FietdTCame you from Shrewsbunf? ,
L.J&r.l fpake with one (my L.)thtt came »6 thence,
A Gentleman ttn\ bred,j^ of good name,
That freely rcndcr'd me tWe newes for true.
N*r. Heere comes mySeruant Tr
On Tucfdaylaft, to liften after Newes. ?/JT A.
.I oucr-rod him on the waft
And he is fumifh'd with no cettalnties,^ o
More thence (haply)may rctaile from me.
/7or.Now Tranert, what good tidrDgfto«e«
fra
200
7r*y$>y Lord,Sir/«JM» VrnftntittumA me backe
iVnh iovful »ydingsj«nd (being better hors'd)
After him. e»me (pun ing he»d
TGentleman (almolt fore-fpcnt with fpecd) 3^
bit ftopp'd by me, to breath his blooJicd horfc.
IkaskdthcwaytoChcftcrsAndofhim *
wd^cmana wdiat Newes from Shrewsbury:
!e told me, tn» Rebellion had$ lucke,
And that yong Harrj Parties Spu^rftgpt cold.
V i th (hat he gaue his able Horfethe head,
md bendinE Tor wards [hootfc
Jl\ headland __
le fecm'd in running, to dcnoure cne way,
Staying no longer queftion. A
N^. Ha?Ag«nw
'4mt Parent Spurrc was cold ?
•,cold.Spurre?) chat Rebellion,
1 lucke?
My Lord :Tlc tell you what,
; Lord your Sonne,haue not the dty,
Honor, for ^Jkcnpoinu
_<ny Barony. Neuertalkeofit;, /O
.Why fhould the Gentleman that todeW;
Siue 'hen luch inftances of LofTef
«£.?>V. Who,he?
it was (bmjjhieldingFelloWi that had (bine
The Horfe Mrode-oo i tnd vu>g my lite
Spcakc at aoucnturc. lookc.Kerocomcj tnoreNew-es,
mg Henry the Fourth.
Nor. Yel,thii man trow, like to'-itle-Ieaft,
theNatorcof a Trigicke Volume :
nd, wben the Irnpcrioqi Flood
awiSSftVfurpaiton,,
MoneryMft. thou come from Shrewsbury ?.
//or. I fan from Shrew »buiy (my Noble Lord)
Where hatcfihl dcatB put on hit vgUeft MaiWT*
To fright our party. fg> A
North. Howdoth my Sonne.and Brother?
Tl.o^embl'ftMndiheWhitcaeffcinthylCheekc
ts apur then tn'y Tongue, co tell thy Errand.
Euen fuch araaalfp fa inttfo fpiritlefle,
So dull, fodeadiiTlookc^b
D^rew Priuni Cortaine.nn tbff
And would hauetoldhimrHalfe hisTtoy was bora'd.
, my Pefdet death, ere thou report'ft it.
f hou \vould'ft fay t^om Sonne did xhus ,and thus :
other, thus . So fougin the Noble Do»glM%
g my greedy car e, with their bold deeds,
(be end (tonop mijie.Eare indeed)
>(l a Sigh, to blow away this Praife,
Boding with Brother, Soniw,and all are dead.
Mer."Qevglat'tt Luing.anS your Brother,yet:
But for my LfVl> yoor Sonnet
North. Wny he is dead. ,.»
See what a r<A3y tongue Sufpition HaSi ; <^
He that but fcarcs the rhing.he woulUnot know.
Hath by In^ift,knowledge from others E^cs,
Thatwhat n?fcard,^dianc'd. Yet fpeakf(?)i»'w»)
Tell thou tr^Earle.rnfbjujnation Lies,
And 1 will take I c. ai^wtFt Difgrace. /^
Aa3 make thee rich, for doing me fuch wrong.
At>, Yau tre too great, to be(by me)|ainfaid :
Your Spirit 1^,500 true, your Feares too ccrtaine.
frtb. ^^£or a" this,fay not that Perctcs dead.
rtrangeConfeflion in thine Eye :
fhak'fytby K«d, and hold'fl it Fearc.orSmnej
To fpeake a «i"tb' *8}? '3e fl»'nc>fay f° •
TheTonguc/drTendsfigi.^at reports his death :
And he doth iinnc that dojjn bc^ye the dead :
Not he, which fayes the dead u not aiiuc ;
"te firft bringcr of vnwelcomc Newes
but a I°o5j^ Office : andhis Tongue,
o«u.,ds euer afrtr as a fullen Bell
Rememb^ed, knolling a departing Friend.
fmy Lordjyour fon is dead,
uld force you to beleeuc
,Ihadnotfeenc.
him in bloody flare,
4wearied,and out-breathV)
tofe i^"t wrath beaic downe
The ntucr-daun tea ptreie to tbn earth,
Jt.W.° I cannot
JMor* I afn forr
That, which Iw
But thefe mine ey
Rend'ring faint qu&an
To Htnrit Mna&ithtvt\\oft
Fron^whenceCwith Iife)he n
In few} ht> death (whofe fpirit lent a fire,
Eucn to the duIIeftPeazant in his Campe) ^
Being bruited once.ltookefire and heateaway
Frorruhe bcft temped a Courage in his Trobpet ,
For from his Mctdg was his Party ftcel'd ;
\VhicFi onccjinhini abated. all tlic reft
Turn'd on theoifclues, like dull amheauy Lead i
And m the Thing, that's heauy irf itlelfc,
Vponc^forctmcntjfiyes with grcatefl fpeedc,
Lend to this weight, fuc^lightncfGp with their Feare,
That Arrovres fled not fwlftcr toward their ayme,
Then did our SpWien fayming atlheir fafety)
Fly from the fTeio. Then wauhat Noble Worccflcr
Too foone u'nfprifoner : ar2 that furious Scot,
(The bloody &*&($£ whofcwell-labouring fword
Had three tiroes Qain£tt&Gpe3rance of the King,
Can vsilchis ftomscKV, ^^djd grace the fhsme
Of thofcthat turn'd their oacKs :and in his Bight,
Stumbling la Fcare,wu took'c, TJjf fumme or al!,
I«, that the King hath wonne : ^d^th. fent our
A fpeedy power, to encounter you ray Lord,
Vnder the Conduit ofapng Lancaftcr
AndWeftmerlarid. thj is chc Newes at full.
Nfrtk. For this,IflulIhmStime enough to tnouroe
InPoyfbn,thcreii Phyficke sSrffil this oew*«
(Hat)ingbeene well)thatwoulonaue made me /ukc.
And ast^W reich.whofc Feauer-weakned iovnti,
Likeflrengthleffe Hindges>uckle vnder tifc,3c
Impatient ofhUFit, breakcs like a Kre ^
OutWhi» keepers armes : Euenio,ny Limbe«
( Weak'ned with greefe) being now \nngd with gree/e,
Are thrice thcmfclues. Hence thereforethou nice crunch,
AfcalitGauntlctnoWjWJthioyntsofStecIe
Muft graucthishand. And hence thou fickly Quoife^
Thou artjgguard too wanu>n for the head,
Which Prmces,fiefh'd wiw C*nflueft,aymc to hit.
Now bindc my Brqwcs with Tron,and apprqj^h
The raggcd'ft houre,that Time and Spight a£e bring
To frowne vnon thvenrag'd Nortliumbcrland/
Let Heauen kn»Ey th : now let not Natures hand
!«eepethewildeFl»^cqnfin'd : Let Order dye,
And let the world rtbiomjet be a Wage
To feede Contention in} Ihig'ring A<£
But let one fpirit of the Hm-bomc C*i
g Rcig
"j6 ^ThcfecondTartof K^ing Henry the Fourth.
ttf i gie in all bofomes, that each heart being fet
On bloody Cmides. the rude Scene may cnH,
XnHrlarkncficDctheburicrofihedead. 3<j (Honor.
L.Rttr Sweet Earlc,diuorcc not wifcdrtrrLfcom your
M»r. The I iucs of .aiy our louing Complices
LeancjjQri your health, the which if you giu/o're
To ftorrny PalTior.,niut3Lrcrforcc decay*
You cSO th eueni of Wijre(my Noble Lord)
Aiid, fumm'd the accoropt of Chance,before you laid
* — Lehcad : Itwasyourprefurmize,
dfj^c of blowcs.your Son might drop,
r^vujj^'d o're perils, on an edge
More likcltb fjffin, then to get o're:
You were aduifd his tTefn was capeable 30
Of Wounds, MdScanfl ; and that his forwatdSlric
Would lift him, where moft trade of dan
Yet did you fay go forth : and none oft"
(Though ftrongly apprehended) could i
jXlie ftifre-bornc Ajftion : What hath then befalne?
Or what hajhthis bold enterprise bring forth,
/wore then tn& Being, which was like to be ?
L.Bar. We all thattr^«£aged to this loffe,
Knew that we ventur'd 6fi (!^h dangerous Seal,
That if we wrought out life,was ten to one t
And yet we vcntut'd for the gaincpropos'd, fo
Choak'd t^refpea of likely perill fear'd,
A»d fince \£e are o're-(«,venturc againe.
Com;, we will all put fojTh; Bady ,an il Good*,
^r.Tis more then rune : And (my moft N&U Lord)
I hcare for certaine, and do fpcakc the truth :
Thfgcntle ArclTjbifhop of YorkeJs »p
With well appointed Powresihejs a man ^
Who with a double Surety bindesnis Followers.
Mv Lard (yourSonne)had onely but the Corses,
•c It fhadow^.Tna the ftiewes of men to fight.
For that fame vtora(Rebellton) did diuide^/o
The aftion of rfteir bodies, from their foulej,
And they did fight with queafincffe, conftram'd
As men drmKe Potior^; that their Weapons only
Seerh'd on^Sr Me : but for *heit Spirits and Soules,
This w-^rd (Rebellion;itn|d froze them vp,
As Fifh are in a Pond. But nowthe Bifhop
Turnes InTurrcftion t
Suppos'd f
He's foIlowM botn witn Body,and with Mindc :
E.h enlarge his Ri (Ing, with tne LlocJ
King Rifhard, fcrap'd from Pcmfret flcnes,
from heaueniis QiJarrell.and his Caufe i
Tels them,he dotrfriem^de a bleeding Land,
G^a^inj for life, vnder %rcit£*lli>>gl>rookf,
AnI mf»re,andlcfle.do fl'sckc to follow him.
f^Nvrth. I kSw of this before. But to fpeake truth.
This prcfeat efftfe had wip'J it from my mirulc.
G1* in with me^hd council! cucry man
The aptcft v^ay far fafety, af?d reuenge : ^i)
Get Poft«,and.Lctterj,and friake Friends with fpeetl,
Ncuer fo few.nor neuer yet more need.
Scena Tertia.
faEittr Ftlil.iffe.and P^e.
f.i/.Sirra.'iiu giant, what hie* theUoft.to my water?
J*<t? He Cid fir,thc water it iclfe w» a gocd healthy
water:f»ut frirrhc party that ovv d it he iiiicht hauc moic
^ITfmrfr&r. A
F.<1. MeoofallJorTstakeapritlc to gird at mee: «.ne
hraine of this fnolifh c«mj»<%unded Qay-man, is net aNlc
V?oinucnt anything that tends tolsujhjc^, mnre then!
muentjOr is inucnted «n me. J am nnt «ncly witry in rriy
felfcjbut the cauf*<hat wins in other fncri. I H«e heere
walke before thee^Se a So^, that hath otewhelmM all
her Lit«r.but one.'^lf the Prince put thee into my S«-
uice for any other reafon, then to fct mec «ff, why thcn\
hauejpoturlgement. Thou horfon Mandrakjf, thcu an
7 CO
be w«rne in my cap, then t<y&it at my heelei. I /^*
was ncSer rrsann d with an A MJ till nSvv • but 1 will fette
you neyther in Gold, ngfcSiluJr, Hut fnVildc appzrell.and
fend you backe againe tp y«urMafter, for a IcweJI. The
luuinAll (trie Prince yoorMaftcr) wWc Chirpjoio»yet
;'d, I will fooncr haw a bcarH gfjw in the Mime of
1 :n he (lull get one on his cheeke : yet he nil!
fay, his Face*h a Face-Royall. Hgauen may
n he will, it is not a haiitarniGfe^ct : he riaj
ftill at a Fa ce-Ro^ll , for fthrbet 1hall n-uer
fcpence out ofit; and yet he will be crowing, tt if
he had \Wfcman euer fincthis Father was a Batchellonr,
He may keepe his owne Grace, butheis almnft «ur 6t
mine, I canaflurehira. What faid M.D«*^MI.{ abaft
the Sat ten for my fhort Cloak«,and Slop* .'
Tug. He M?"r*)E£y ftiould procure him better Arfu-
rance.thjn 'Btaidlft i ne wold not ukc his Bopd & your*,
he lik'd n^t the Security. ^
Ttd. Let him bee daom'd like the Glutton, duy hit
Tongue be houe^.a horibn Athtt»phel ; a Rafcafly-yea-
fprfwth-knj^f .beare a Gentleman in hand, and then
ftan J vpon Seem The b^rfon fmooth-pates doe novr
weire nothlrfg^but^igh fhock, and bunches of Keyei at
their girdles : and if\man (sthrAUgh with them in h<*.
neft Taking-vp, thcrfcniy muft ftanjvprr. Securitie: ]
had as liefe thet wojuld^ut Rat<-bane in my mouth. *«
orfer to floppe it witn Security. 1 look'd hec flmtlr1. hiu.
fent me two arm twenty yauh of Satten (as I am true
Knight) Ad he fends roj Scanty. Well,he may deep in
Security, for he hath the bprne wf Abundance : and the
lightneffeofhisVJlfcln^s through it, andyetcann
he fce,th^Uj»h he haue hisawne Lant home to light him.
Where's 3r«40»£>
P*r. He's gone into Smithhcl J tw buy your vforinif
ahor/e. 3* •
IQ Fal. ! boiignt him in r»aulcs,asd hee'I My^nee a htrfe
>jn Smithfieltl? If I could get mee a wife in tne Stewes,
wereMann'd.Hors'd.an-tyViuU ^^ A
SntnCkit^ Tf*(ticet4tMiSenMnt.
Vag. Sir, heere entries rheNfclleman that cwmaitted
the Prince forftriking1iir^al^t<Z?W«//r.
f»l. Wait
l n**t fee him.
Cb.fufi. W hat's U that g^e* there ?
Str. Ftljtjfftjnd t pleafeyc
I*ft. Hetftw
ur L*«!fliip.
Ser. He myLord.Cift he hath^^nce done j;v*.fc ferui'ce
atShrewstury: and(aA^earc) is now going with ffcme
Cbarg^,to the Lord lobncfLanttfitr.
luit. What to York efCall lurobackcagaine
Ser. Str fOmFalptffe.
Fal. Boy,rell him.j am deafe.
/•«<r. YoumuftMiXcl
luft. J am Care rfKs;to the hearing cf any thing g*.ti
Go plucke him by thetlbcw3l mnft Ij-eake wiih hilt,
Ser. Str/a'&fcJ C
Fal. VVtiat^a yon^ fcnatie act! teg?I« there
there not impIoyment.-'Doih net the K.lncj^j.
not the Rebels wan: Soldicrs?Thcuoh it lue
4TO?
1JQ9
on any fide but one, k if^fe flitrac to bcgge. then to
x •nthe woi ft fidKc;e i: wodc thcnthc name of Re-
match.
100
17
1*6
you were an honed manPSer-
vouldierthip afide, I had
jfd ia'my ihroaiiTTl ha'Sfaid fo.
Str. 1 pray you'pir) then fee Y&K KnigWb.»od and
pout Soulciicr-Qiip afidc, ai^^iuemcclcai *
you lye in your throat, ifyouTayl am any o
'• IgjyctheelczMtotellmefo? Ila
which grow** ro me? If tbou gec'rt asyle;
me : if thou tak'ft lcauc,tbou wcr't boter be
Hunt-counter,hcncc : Ajjant.
Ser. Sir,my Lord wStld fpcake wi
M. Sir lthnF«lft»je^Noi
:My good Lord :giue your Lord/rTip goi
day I itn glad to fee yout Lordfhip abri
t your I osdfhip was fickc. I hopeyoui
abroad by aduife Your Lordfl>ip(ihou<
our youih)hath v^omefngftfo of age in you: fome rel-
(h of the felineffiftJTiiue/ftnd I roofl numbly befeech
our Lordfhip.t oMaea rtaerend ore of ynurheaUh.
/«/. Sir /»£;;, Il^yon bcfotc your Expedition, to
.ip,lhearefei«ltu«fiie is
yt from WaW.
aiefly : Vflq^dUnot come
400
kCoofcberry. You that arc old , confide: not ihf
fic^of TI that arcyong : you mcafcre trttjheaT^"
T>trs,vvuhihebittcrncvofvcurgals: tV wetharareinthe
,hl( Hijlincflcis falne into
hfl, ItaWcenotofliis
when Ifentfeiryj?
F»l. And 1 h
this fame wtior
I»P. Wetljhcauen meriihrn. I pray let
T*l. TJus Apoplexie isf as I takeit)a kind
jie, a flecpmg of the b^ad. a hoi fon Tingling.
/«/?. VVTiat tc^ you me of it i be it as it is.
Frf/, It hathitori^irhll from much greefc; frotp ftnsly
Uripertudba'.icfioft«brainc. ] haueread thecaufc of
his effec~tfuj Caltn^it a kinde of deafenefle^
/*/?.. Idunkeyoii.are falne intothe dileafe : Foryeu
heare not vfiutt I tayro \ ou.
FW. Very well(my Lord JverywelL rather ??yjjeafe
you) itiithedifeafcofnotLiflning, flj roalaa) of not
Markinguhatl am troubled withall. ^
$00
5*0
'OjJd amend the
Utention jjfour ca're*^:'! care not if Ibe your Phyfitian
F*L Is»aspoorfras/tf£,my lordjfl&noTfoPaticnt:
pour Lordfhip may mjpiftcr the Potiormt imprisonment
to mean refpcft jtfPoiardc : but ho w phpDlc5 bee your
Paticut.to follow jam prefcrip tiojj^ tfte v& may make
fome drem of a fcruple.or mdcxdc^ icrupfeit felfe.
/<. I fent for you (when there wSrc matters againft
fou foi your life) to come M&c withrna,
I f*l. As I w*j ;I:cn aduilcdoy m^d£iiacd Councel.m
I ibelawes of this L:nd>feruice. 1 dicWtcome.
Jufl. Wel.thc truth is^fir /«fo»)you iftu
F4/.Hc that buckles Kim in my bclt.canot li
/«j?.Yonr Meanci is very flcnder,and your w
F«/. [ vvcui!dit^f«c otherwife : 1 would my
ac greater, and my wade fletuigrer.
lujt. You hancm'ifled the yautMiull Prince. A4
The yong Prince hath milled mee. i am yitFel-
great belly tand he my Dogge.
j MB lock to g»ll anew.heal d wound: your
Shrewsbury, hath a little gilded ouer
exploit oft Gads-hill. You may thaoke the
vnauict time, for your quiet o re-pofttng that Action.
F-r/. M7jj|ilf (Wolfe
/n^.But fin ft all is wcl.keep it fo: wake njjt a tleeping
ft'.. To wake a Wfi^c.is as bad, as to fmell a Fox.
/«. WhatPyou arc afa'caadle,t]icjjetcer part burnt out
F*L AWa(reIljJariaMe,myL^rd;allTa;iow:ifIJid
fiy ofwax.my «rowih w ou ljd[ SD p'rb u c tnc ttuth.
/«/?. There is noTa white haitjj on your facc.but (hold
haiic his cfreft of ^rauity. ^^
FaU - His effeCToi^'rauvj gtiuy, grauy.
/«/? You follow the j^g Prince vp and downe,like
his cuill AngciL "^
T4. Njc^ 0 (my lord) your ill'ATfg-ell is light : but I
hopCjhethanookcsvpon mec,, will take mcc without,
ungtand xsf.^n fome refpeifts [ grant, ( cannot go :
tell.VerSe is of fo little regard in thefc Cc-fidR*
,5^it true valor is turn'd Beare-heard. PrcgnanV
cieismadcaTapfter, and hath his ouicke wit wafted in
o'ming Re.gMjms : all che othergifts appcrtinenupuian
\aji the ma'iicc'o} thi» Agclhapcs them) arc nor w_oprth a
l«wrbeeke?
belly? Is not
\vic (ingle?
qimyfandw
Yawardof ouryouth,! mpft conttfl^arc^agges too,
./«/?. Do you fet dovvftycait name in the Icrowle of
youth.that are written downcTMil^'iih all the Charrac«
ters of agcPhaug^rou not^rnorWeye ? a dry hand?.a yel«
"exrcafing leg? an increfing
voice broken.'youi wiudc fhort'yout
about you blafted with Ant i-
our felfe yongrFy,fy,fy, fir lobn.
,1 vfis borne w.it.h a wliire hcjd.fic fom-
Hy.Formy voice,! haac loft it vxBhhsl-
and fingingof Anihemcs.Toa
ijvl wilfnot: the truth i*. 1 am onely i
and vinlcrftanding: and lie that w *
for a thoufcnd Mjrkes,lcyJi;m lend me
at him. For the boxc of U?care that the Prince
he gaue itQS a rude Prince.todyou tooke
bjfi Lotd. Tnaue checkt him for «t.!>~ d the
events i Marry not in a flies and faci::.
/•tf.Wel.ncauen fend the£rm« a better co
IW. Ueauen fend the Companion a better
cannocrid my handtd^himi
Itt/K Well^bj! Kmy hath Teucr'd you and Prince Har*
17,1 hcarc-youtojwnkwith Lord i»b* of Laocaftcr, t-
gamft the ArehBUhopSH the EarlCjOf Northumberland |4$0
F/i/. Yes,I thankcydur pretty £jSp: wit foiic : bu
tookeyou pray^JfaJl you that kifferny Ladie Peace, at
home)thsfl our Aufifi; ioynnotin ahotday: for if"
but two {hires out^rith me, and Ljueanemi to fwear ex.
traordinarily : 'if it bee a hot d»y,Tn bonoifh any thing
but my Bottle, vvciald Ifl^bineOfr fpit white againe :
There is not a dtjKetrous ^jQtSflfcanpcepe out his head,
but I am thruft »nfi it. J^fll,T ftnnat laft euer.
/«/?. Wcll.bc WohefTJ^pTioneft>and heauea blefle your
Expedition.
I'M. Will your Lordfhip lend mee a thoufaod pound,
" ;- ' r A
, not a pcny : you arc too impudent
to Utfie croiljs. Far* you we. i. Commend mee to tor
Coftnjtsjra^iaad. .
- Fat. If I cfo.fillop me with a thrce-man-Bcetfe, A
can no more Separate Age and Ccuctou£nefleftJ»en '
part yong iimbes and letchery : birtthc Gowi galle
g»
00
(300
53ft
BOOK FOUR.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
139
CHAPTER XXII.
The Root Numbers.
An arithmetical word-cipher is one in which the same
number recurs again and again; and the words thus
brought out constitute the inner or cipher story.
The simplest form would be where every tenth word
of the external composition, be it poem, drama, or prose
work, constitutes a coherent story.
This could not occur by chance. To prove this, let
anyone take a copy of any book, or a column of a news-
paper, and count the words, setting down every tenth
word. It is very rarely indeed that any two of these
words, in their order, will agree in grammar, sense and
rhetoric. It will be extraordinary indeed if three of them
so cohere ; while it seems to me, it will be absolutely
impossible that four will.
It is stated, as a rule, for instance, that there are ten
chances against one that the tenth word of a particular
writing will be the word "our;" and ten times ten
chances, (or 100) against one, that the twentieth word
will be, by chance, "father ;" and one hundred times one
hundred (or 10,000) chances against one that the thir-
tieth word will be "who;" and a thousand times one
thousand (or 1,000,000) chances against one that the
fortieth word will be the word "art;" and so on, until
140 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
we reach numbers for which we have no representatives
in our language, before we come to the end of the "Lord's
Prayer."
But even this does not seem to be sufficient to express
the impossibility of sense coming out of nonsense, by
accident.
There are 21,000 words in the Shakespeare vocabu-
lary. There is therefore but one chance out of 21,000
that a given number will produce the one word desired,
out of all these 21,000; and but one chance out of 21,000
times 21,000, or 25,000,000, that the second word would
be the one needed; and when we reach the third stage,
there will be but one chance out of six hundred and
eighty quadrillions that the third word is the one re-
quired ! Therefore, when we find in the following pages,
coherent phrases, like "the old jade," (as applied to
Queen Elizabeth) or "Will Shakst Spur," or "John
Shakst Spur," "the fish-pond," or "in silken apparel,"
held together by a self-evident rule, and derived prima-
rily from one number, the reader will remember that
there is only one chance out of six hundred and eighty
quadrillions that the combination could come about by
accident. But when whole sentences of hundreds of
words are derived in the same way, it is an insult to
the human intelligence to pretend that the text was not
prearranged and adjusted to produce such results.
Coherences, by an arithmetical number, constitute then,
the difference between a "cipher" and a "cento." The
first proves a rule; the second proves only ingenuity.
What is the primal number from which is derived the
cipher story given in these pages ; and how is it obtained ?
The primal root-number is 836.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 141
If the reader will turn to the fac-simile hereto at-
tached, of a page in the Folio of 1623, page 74 of the
Histories, on which the Play of "The Second Part of
Henry the Fourth/' begins, and examine carefully the
first column of that page, he will find twelve words in
italics, like "Rumor," "Harries," "Hotspurre," etc. ; and
ten words in brackets, to wit: — "Making the wind my
post-horse," and "Under the smile of safety." But one
of these is a double word — "post-horse." If we count
"post" and "horse" as separate words, we then have
eleven words in brackets.
Here we have three numbers that are used as multi-
pliers, to wit : 12, 10, and n.
Scene One begins on this page 74, and runs through
page 75 and terminates on page 76.
We then have three numbers to be multiplied, viz. :
74, 75 and 76. The ten, (of the bracketed words), is
the multplier of page 74, and gives the primal root num-
ber 740; the number of italic words, 12, is the multi-
plier of page 75, and gives us the primal root number
900; while the eleven bracketed words, counting "post-
horse" as two words, are the multiplier of page 76, and
give us the primal root number :
836.
The tremendous nature of the cipher will dawn upon
the reader when we call his attention to the fact that
each of these primary numbers tells a long, continuous
story, of thousands of words, extending through all the
first and second parts of the play 'of Henry the Fourth,
traveling over the same ground, using the same words,
inter-locking with each other, and interfered with by
14-2 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
similar ciphers, wherever an act or scene begins; and
extending, right and left, from the common center of
page 74, through the whole of these two plays, from
page 46 to page 100 of the Folio.
When the reader perceives what a multitudinous story
is derived from the number 836, he has only to remem-
ber that as much more grows out of each of the num-
bers 740 and 900, to realize that not only almost every
word of these two plays must be used in the cipher story ;
but that, in many instances, they are used over and over
again! The mind stands appalled before such a stu-
pendous work. It seems impossible; and yet there are
the figures to demonstrate its reality. When fully re-
vealed, the world will be lost in astonishment.
It was while looking forward to this revelation that
Bacon said :
"And death being dead there's no more dying more/'
And:
"Not marble, nor the gilded monuments
Of princes shall outlive this powerful rhyme;
But you shall shine more bright in these contents
Than unswept stone, besmeared by sluttish time.
When wasteful wars shall statues overturn,
And broils root out the work of masonry,
Nor Mars his sword, nor war's quick fire shall burn
The living record of your memory.
'Gainst death and all oblivious enmity
Shall you pace forth; your praise shall still find
room,
Even to the end of all posterity,
That wears this world out to the ending doom."
Sonnet 55.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 143
It would have been a sublime egotism that could have
made such an assertion upon the strength of mere poetry,
some of which is forced, constrained and commonplace;
but the revelation of this marvelous interweaving of two
narratives, the external and internal, will fully justify it.
If proof is needed that the primal root numbers are
obtained by multiplying the number of the page on
which an act or scene begins, by the number of italics
or bracketed words on the first column of the same, we
give the following illustrations :
Act Second, Scene First of the play of First Henry
Fourth begins on page 53 of the "Histories." Examine
the fac-simile of that page, given herewith, and it will be
seen that there are seven italic words on the first col-
umn of page 53 ; multiply 53 by 7 and we have the num-
ber 371. Count each spoken word of the play from the
top of column one, page 53, and it will be found that
the 37ist word is "Bacon."
On the first column of the next page, 54, there are
twelve italic words. Multiply 54 by 12, and we have
648. Count again from the top of column one of the
same page 53, and we have, as the 648th word, "Nicho-
las,"— the name of Francis Bacon's father.
Some time ago I published in the North American
Review an article, in which I showed that the words
"Francis Bacon, Sir Nicholas Bacon's son," were, each
of them, the 37ist word, counting from six out of a
dozen points of departure, on three pages of the Folio,
(such as the beginning or end of pages, acts and scenes,
and the divisions of the text caused by the stage direc-
tions;) and that each of them, from similar points of
departure, on the same three pages, were the 648th word !
144 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
I requested the publisher to submit my manuscript to
some Shakespearean scholar, and have him ascertain
whether or not my countings were correct. The reply
was that they were entirely accurate; but the writer,
Prof. Wm. J. Rolfe, did not believe it had been so pre-
arranged because it would have been impossible to so
print the text ! As if the printers would not set up the
type in any form they were paid for! As if it was not
the printers' rule "to follow copy, if you had to follow
it out of the window." And as if it was not folly to
argue that such a thing was impossible, when it was
conceded that the facts really existed! And that the
counts demonstrated itl
When we turn to page 53 of the "Comedies," we again
find the word "BACON." There are fifteen italic words
on the first column of the page; if we multiply 53 by 15
we have the resulting number, 795 ; and if we start to
count from the top of the first column of that page, as
we did in the previous instance, and count all the hy-
phenated words as two words each, and count in the
bracketed words on the second column of page 53, the
795th word is "BACON."
If we turn to page 67 of the "Histories," we find six
italic words on the first column; let us multiply 67 by
6 and we have 402. Count the words from the top of
the said first column, and the 4O2d word is "SAINT,"
the first word of "SAINT ALBANS," the name of
Bacon's home.
If the reader will observe closely he will see that the
first sub-division of column one, of page 67, contains
72 words. The deducting of 72 from 402, (the root-
number), gives us a remainder of 330; which becomes,
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
145
also a cipher number. Turn to the top of the next page,
68. and the first sub-division contains 16 words; carry
this through that part of scene three on the second col-
umn of page 67, containing 222 words, and we have
92 left, and if we carry this up the first column of page
67, it brings us to the word "ALBAXS," which is the
4O3d word, while the 4O2nd was. as we have seen, the
word "SAIXT." Here we have the compound "SAIXT
ALBANS
In the following instances we have a very striking
proof of the truth of my statement, that the primal root
numbers are produced by multiplying the page on which
a scene begins by the number of italic or bracketed
words on the first column of the same.
I have shown that the root number on which the ex-
amples of my work, given herein, is based is 856. It
was by accident that my investigations followed out this
number. I have also shown that there are 12 italic
words on the first column of page 74, and that 12 was
used as a multiplier of the number of the second page
of the scene ; and that 75 x 12 gives us 900.
As I showed in the "Great Cryptogram," if we take
that number, 836. and begin at the top of page 74 to
count the spoken words, counting the hyphenated com-
pounds like "peasant-towns," or "smooth-comforts-false**
as one word each, and not as two or three words each,
we shall find that the 836th word is the 3O4th word, on
column one, of page 75, which is the word "found," in
the sentence.
"But Priam found the fire ere he his tongue."
If again we count from the first word of the next
- 75 > in the S3Lmc wav- we sna11 find that t*16 836th
10
146 THE CIPHER IK THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
word is the 389111 word on the second column of page
75, which is the word "out"
This gives us the combination "found out."
But here is the most remarkable part of the matter,
and the most striking proof of that adjustment of the
text on which the internal cipher narrative depends.
If we now take that other cipher number, 900, and
count again from the top of column one, of page 74,
as we did with 836, but not now omitting the words
in brackets, and counting in each word in the double
words, we find that the 9OOth word 'is the same 3O4th
word upon column one of page 75, to wit — the word
"found."
And if we start once more from the top of column
one, of the next page, 75, and counting in the same way
as in the last instance, we shall' find that the 9OOth word
is the same word "out" the 389^1 word on the second
column of page 75.
Thus we have :
836 from 1-74 — "found."
836 from 1-75 — "out."
900 from 1-74 — "found."
900 from 1-75 — "out."
In other words, exactly enough bracketed and double
words were interjected into the text to make the 836th
word the 9OOth word, in both instances. This implies
the most careful adjustment of the text and the most
precise proof-reading, which could not have been per-
formed by William Shakespere, who had been peacefully
sleeping for seven years in the Stratford church.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 147
And it will be observed that to adjust the text so that
there would be enough bracketed and hyphenated words
to make up the difference between 836 and 900, we find
such extraordinary hyphenations as the following:
On page 74, -near the bottom, we have these lines :
"From Rumours tongues,
They bring smooth-comforts-false, worse than True-
wrongs.'''
Just above it we have:
"this worm-eaten-hole of ragged stone."
In what other book can you find "smooth-comforts-
false" united by hyphens into one word? What does it
mean? And what are "true-wrongs?"
And how can there be a "worm-eaten-hole" of "stone?"
And a "ragged stone" at that!
The bracketings are as extraordinary and unreason-
able as the hyphenations.
Near the top of the second column of the 75th page
we have this line :
"I cannot think (my Lord) your son is dead."
A parenthesis is a sentence within a sentence; but
there is no reason in the world to place "my Lord" in
brackets, except the fact that if the writer had not done
so the words "found" and "out" could not have been
used for the 836th count and the Qooth count.
On the two columns of page 75 there are 54 words in
brackets and 14 hyphenated words. On the preceding
page there are 32 words in brackets and 10 hyphenated
148 THE CIPHER IN THE SKAKESPEARE PLAYS.
words ; and in no case, apart from the needs of the cipher,
was there any necessity for any of these 86 bracketings
and 24 hyphenations. And they are the more remarkable
because in the two preceding pages, 72 and 73, in an-
other play, ist. Henry IV, there are but three bracketed
words, instead of 86, and 5 hyphenated words, instead
of 14.
It does not seem to me possible that a reasonable mind
can reach any other conclusion than, that there has been
a careful arithmetical adjustment of the text of this
play. To make it possible to use the words "found" and
"out" in the 836th count and also in the Qooth count,
the interjection of 64 bracketed and hyphenated words
was necessary; and here we find the text strained in an
abnormal manner to bring in those 64 additional words.
The mind that could believe all this to be accident would
deny the existence of design in 'the frame of the universe.
505 and 523,
A great part of the cipher story given in "The Great
Cryptogram" came from the subordinate numbers, 505
and 523. How are these obtained from the primal root-
number 836?
The number 836 tells a long, continuous story, as
modified by the modifiers on page 74. I will give here-
after some examples of the narrative growing out of 836.
But the cipher is like a tree : — it branches out. There
is first the trunk ; then the branches ; then the twigs ;
then the leaves.
I have stated that the alternate addition and subtrac-
tion of 284, — the number of words on the first column
of page 74 — was used to tell a part of the cipher story,
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 149
But after a time it branches again. The number ob-
tained by adding 284 to 836 is dropped and the narrative
goes out on the number obtained by deducting 284 from
836. This is 836-284=552. Then it branches again.
From 552 is deducted the modifier 29, obtained from
the last subdivision of column two, of page 74. This
gives us 552-29=523. And this tells a considerable
story.
But if the reader will turn again to the first column of
page 74; from which we obtained the 284, he will find
that there are on it eleven words in brackets and seven
hyphenated words, making 18 in all. Now deduct 18
from 523, and we have, — 523-18=505.
In other words, we have climbed up the tree of the
cipher and crawled out on one of the branches, and in
the following pages we will study the relations between
the twigs and the leaves of that particular part of the
tree.
We will produce in the following pages, an inner cipher
narrative, in which every word is the 5O5th word ; and
another in which every word is the 523d word ; and
while studying this part of the foliage of the cipher, we
shall catch glimpses of the stupendous nature of the
whole tree.
I have no doubt the cipher extends to every one of
the so-called Shakespeare Plays.
Nothing like it has ever been produced in the history
of the human mind. It is history and philosophy set
forth by the greatest intellect that ever dwelt on this
earth of ours.
150 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
CHAPTER XXIII.
The Movement of the Cipher.
Having established, as I hope, conclusively, that the
primal root-numbers, all through the huge Folio of 1623,
depend upon the paging of that volume ; and are obtained
by multiplying the number of the page upon which a play,
or an act, or a scene begins, by the number of italicised
or bracketed words found on the first column of the page
in question, I pass to the consideration of the rule which
governs the movement of this primal number so obtained.
It is evident that 836, or 900, or 371, or any other sim-
ilar fundamental figure, could yield by itself but a few
words. There could not be more than a dozen words to
a page that would be the 836th word from the points of
departure afforded by the page. Therefore to present a
long story something more was needed.
i. This is obtained by the rule that the cipher numbers
are carried alternately up and down the columns.
This rule is inflexible. Whenever we obtain one word
of the cipher narrative by carrying the cipher number
DOWN a column, we obtain (as shown in the case of the
words "Saint Albans") ; the next vvord by carrying it
UP the same} or an adjacent column.
This I did not know when I published "The Great
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 151
Cryptogram;" and consequently my workmanship was
fragmentary and imperfect. I obtained parts of a story,
without a rationale. I have devoted all my leisure time,
during the last eleven years, to working out the rule gov-
erning the formation of the cipher narrative, and I claim
now to demonstrate, in this work, a perfect cipher, with
the reason for every movement.
2. There is another rule which governs the cipher :
When a cipher number plays around a certain fragment
of the text, the number which represents the number of
'words in that fragment is alternately added to or sub-
tracted from the said cipher number.
We shall see hereafter that the number of words on
the first column of page 74, where the cipher begins, is
284, and that number, 284, is alternately added to and
subtracted from the cipher number, whatever it may be.
The second column of page 74 contains 248 words and
we shall find that whole sentences come out by a similar
alternate addition and subtraction of 248.
If the reader will look at the fac-simile of page 75, he
will find that the first division of that page, is caused by
the stage direction "Enter Morton," and ends with the
word "news," which is the I93d word from the top. And
he will see hereafter that the root-number, plus 193, al-
ternates with the root-number minus 193, through a long
story. In all these cases the minus numbers go down the
column, while the plus numbers go up the column ; unless
the movement is reversed and then all the minus numbers
go up the column and all the plus numbers go doivn the
column.
The cipher therefore is a game of contradiction or al-
ternations, Whatever is added is also subtracted,
152 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
Moreover, whenever the cipher leaves the column on
which it starts, and overflows, (as it were), into the next
columns, it moves alternately to the right and left, as well
as alternately up and down; unless one of the adjoining
columns is too thickly packed with cipher words, and in
that case the cipher story is carried to the right or left
of the central column.
3. But there is more than this.
The second column of page 74, as I showed in "The
Great Cryptogram/' gives what I called "the modifiers ;"
which, subordinate to the movements up and down and
right and left, perform a very important part in the work-
ing out of the cipher narrative.
There are, for instance, on the second column of page
74, 248 words, divided by two stage directions, to-wit :
"Enter Northumberland," and "Enter Travers."
The first subdivision, above the words : — "Enter North-
umberland," ends with the word "answer," and contains
50 words. The third fragment below the words : "Enter
Travers," contains 30 words, while the middle fragment,
beginning with the word "Heere," and ending with the
word "Newes," contains 168 words.
But here we have a curious fact :
In counting the number of words in that first frag-
ment, as affecting the position of some succeeding or pre-
ceding word, we find it to be 50; and the word carried
through it will therefore be the cipher number, less 50-
Hence, if we desired to use. this fragment of 50 as a
"modifier," it would land us at the same spot as in the
former instance, and there would be no distinction be-
tween the first fragment as a "modifier," and the same
fragment merely counted through.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARK PLAYS. 153
Hence to constitute a difference, necessary to the work,
the cryptographer, when he uses the fragment as a "mod-
ifier," counts not all the words in the fragment, which
would be 50, but the number of ivords above the last ivord,
which is 49.
In the same way the third or last fragment, as a ''mod-
ifier," is not 30, but the number of words between the
first word and including the last word, ivhich is 167,
(218-51=167).
Thus again we shall see, that while that first fragment,
of page 75, containing 193 words, is alternately added and
subtracted ; thus 505+193 alternating with 505 — 193, yet
having established the root-numbers 698 (505+193=
698), and 312 (505-193=312), if we proceed beyond
this, and desire to use the first fragment again, as a "mod-
ifier," we call it 192 instead of 193, to-wit: the number
of words above the last word of the fragment. And if we
desire to use, in the same way, the second fragment, on
the same page, which contains 254 words, take the num-
ber of words below the first word of the paragraph, and
this gives us, not 254, but 253.
But in addition to all these matters, which complicate
the working out of the cipher, we have the alternations of
the "modifiers," on the second column of page 74.
If the story revolves around the middle fragment we
have plus 167 and minus 167.
Then there are 50 words above the first zvord of the
middle fragment, and we have plus 50 and minus 50 ; as
contradistinguished from the first fragment standing
alone, where, as I have shown, the modifier is 49; just as
193 becomes 192, and 254, 253.
In the same way, from the end of the middle fragment
154 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI.AYS.
to the bottom of the page, there are 30 words, as contra-
distinguished from the third fragment, standing alone,
when it is but 29.
Then there are 218 words from the top of the column
(2,74) to the last word of the second subdivision; and
from the top of the second subdivision to the end of the
column there are 197 words.
There is no doubt that Bacon believed that he had cre-
ated a cipher, which, to use his own words, "excluded the
decipherer."
When he put forth these plays in quarto form, paged
from page I to page 20 or 30, it was impossible for his
enemies, even in that age of ciphers and deciphering, to
detect and reveal the inner narrative depending upon a
prospective folio volume, existing then, probably, in man-
uscript sheets, in some secret coffer, or buried in the earth,
at Saint Albans, or elsewhere, in which the same play be-
gan, not with page one, but with page 46 or 74, or 300.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 155
CHAPTER XXIV.
Marlowe's Death.
Let us take that root-number 505, and alternately add
to it and subtract from it the number 248 ; being the num-
ber of words on the second column of page 74 ; — the page
of the modifiers ; — the first page of the play of "The Sec-
ond Part of Henry Fourth."
We then have :
505+248=753, and
505—248=257.
Here then are two numbers, which are carried alter-
nately up and down the columns, and modified by the ad-
dition or subtraction of the modifiers on page 74.
We will carry 753 up the columns, and 257 down the
columns.
There are, on column one, of page 75, 447 words. Now
carry 753 through that column, — which is equivalent to
deducting 447 from 753 ; this leaves' a remainder of 306 ;
which, being modified by deducting 50, leaves 256; and
this carried again up the same column, (one of page 75 )>
brings us to the iQ2d word, the word "More," in the sen-
tence : "Looke here comes more news."
This has been obtained by using the number obtained
156 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
by adding 248 to 505. Let us now take the alternate num-
ber, obtained by deducting 248 from 505. This gives us
257-
We deduct 50 from 753 to get the word "More" Let
us add 50 to 257 and we have 307 ; then add the modifier,
167, to this and we have 474. Now carry this down the
preceding column, containing 248 words, and we have
474 — 248=226 ; and the 226th word, on the next preced-
ing column, (i, 74), is the word "low." This gives us
the combination "More=low," which is the cipher ex-
pression of the sound of the word "Marlowe," the name
of the supposed poet, Christopher Marlowe, who imme-
diately preceded the appearance of Shakespere as a dra-
matic writer.
Their works, as I have already shown, overlap each
other, so that the critics have disputed as to whether plays
like "The Contention between the Houses of York and
Lancaster" and parts of "Henry VI.," were written by
Marlowe or Shakespere.
Here it will be observed that "More" is obtained by go-
ing up i%. 75 and doubling on itself — minus 50 — and going
up the same column again ; and "low" is obtained by start-
ing from the top of i, 75 and going backward and down,
— plus 50 — and plus 167.
It may be urged that "Marlowe" and "More-low" are
not the same ; but it must be remembered that we are dip-
ping into the middle of a long, continuous narrative, run-
ning through the thousand pages of the Folio; and we
will find that it is the fashion of the cryptograhper to give
occasionally the sound of the exact name, and then give
words that approximate that sound, where a repetition is
necessary. Thus in the "Tempest," the "Two Gentlemen
THD CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 157
of Verona/' "Measure for Measure/' "Midsummer
Night's Dream," "The Merchant of Venice," and a great
many other plays, we have the words "mar" and "low,"
giving the exact name of "Marlow." In other cases it is
disguised as "marle-o," "more-low," etc. And in the In-
duction to the "Taming of the Shrew" we have the word
"Christopher" and the word "low" and close at hand, (on
two consecutive pages), the word "more;" while towards
the end of the play is found the word "mar," giving the
whole name, — "Christopher Mar-low."
In the same way, we have in "Richard II." the words
"Shake" and "Speare." Also the same words in ist Hen-
ry IV., ist Henry VI., and 2nd Henry VI. ; but we have
the combination of "Shake-spur," "Shake-spare," "Jack-
spur," "Shak'st-spur," etc., a score of times in the plays.
Too many repititions of "Shake" and "Speare" would
have aroused suspicion at once.
Having now established the words "More-low" what
follows ?
We obtained the word "low" by adding the modifier
167 to the root number 257 plus 50, equal 474, (257+167
=4244-50 — '174) , and carrying it forward and down.
Now let us deduct 167 from the other root number, 753,
thus : 753 — 447=306 — 50=256, and we have 256 — 167
=89; and 89 carried up the same column, (i, 75), brings
us to the 359th word — "ending." Or we can reach the
same result by adding 167 to 192 (the word "More"),
thus : K)2-\-i67=3$c)=" ending."
But as 50 alternates with 167 we next deduct 50 from
257 and we have the number 207. Look at the 2O7th word
on Col. i, p. 75, and we find it is the word " tragic" -
"foretells the nature of a tragic volume/'
158 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
But as the deducting of 50 from the root number 257,
gave us the 2O7th word "tragic" let us add 50 to 257, and
we have 307, which is the word "ere"
This gives us <eere the tragic ending" of "More-low."
What was the tragic ending of "More-low?"
We have already shown that he was killed in a drunken
brawl; — "stabbed to death by a bawdy servingman rival
of his in his lewd love." (Sir William Vaughan, "Golden
Grote, 1600.") Marlowe's biographers tell us he was an
intemperate and licentious creature, who was about to be
arrested for blasphemy, when he fled to Deptford, where
he was slain.
Marlowe was killed June I, 1593; and Halliwell Phil-
lipps says the date of the first appearance of a Shake-
speare play was March 3d, 1592, — the play of Henry VI. ;
that is "ere the tragic ending of More-low." But there
are critics who claim that that play was written by Mar-
lowe. The truth is the two sets of writings overlap and
intermingle because the two men were both masks of the
same mighty intellect, Francis Bacon.
To get the word "ending' we deducted from the root-
number, 753, the modifier 167 ; let us now add 167. We
then have 753+167=920. If we commence at the bot-
tom of Col. i, p. 74, and carry it through page 74, con-
taining 532 words, we have 388 left: (920 — 532=388),
which carried up the same column I, of page 75, brings us
to the 6oth word "Spur," part of the name "Shakst-
spur,") and deducting the modifier 29 from it we reach
the 89th word— "the." (60+29=89). This is the "the"
which precedes the word "tragic :" — "ere the tragic end-
ing of Morelow"
The word "of" is derived from 257+50, and carried
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
159
down the second column of p. 74, containing 248 words,
thus : 257+50=307—248=59 ; which carried forward to
the next column, (i, 74), and down that column, brings
us to the 59th word "of."
Now let us re-state this.
505
-248 down
505
+248 up
257
257+50=307
753+ J 67=920— 29=89 1
257—50=207
753—167=586—50=
536—447=89, up 1.75
d. 257+50=307—248=59
up 753—50=703—447—256
up
d.
up
753
207—1,75
89—1, 75
207—1, 75
359—1, 75
59—i, 74
192—1, 75
d. 257+50=307+167=474—248=226—1, 74
ere
the
tragic
ending
of
More
low.
Here the modifiers are 50 and 167. "Ere" is 257 plus
50 ; "tragic" is 257 minus 50 ; "of is 257 plus 50. "The"
is 753 plus 167, minus 29; "ending" is 753 minus 167,
minus 50 ; "More" is 753 minus 50, and "low" is 257 plus
50, plus 167.
Observe also that the words are alternately carried up
and down the columns ; and that every word is the 5O5th
word plus 248, or 505 minus 248 !
I have shown that the word "More" of "More-low" was
obtained by deducting 50 from 753, leaving 703 ; and car-
rying this through i, 75, containing 447 words, leaving
256, which again taken up the same i, 75, brought us to
the I92d word, "More"
But instead of carrying 753 minus 50, minus 447, let
160 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
us add 50 to 753=803, and add 447 to 803 ; add this in-
stead of deducting it, and it gives us 1250 (803+447=
1250). Now commence at the top of Col. I, p. 76, and
carry it through that page, p. 76, containing 1102 words,
which is equivalent to deducting 1102 from 1250; this
leaves a remainder of 148, which carried up the next col-
umn (i, 77) brings us to the 43Oth word, which is "//'
This came from 753, and we turn now to the alternate
number, 257; — we added the modifier 167 to get "low" ;
let us now deduct 167, which leaves 90; to get this we add
that other modifier 29, (90+291=1 19) ; which brings us
down the column to the H9th word on column one, of
page 75, the word "had."
We recur now to the alternate number, 753, to which
we add the modifier 197, which gives us 950; (753+197
=950) ; carrying 950 through I, 75, (447 words), leaves
us 503, and this carried backward through p. 74, brings
us, going up column one of p. 74, to the 3Oth. word "com-
menced." Thus : 753+197= 950—447=503—248=255 ; '
284 — 255=29+1=30 : "commenced."
Again take the number 257 ; add the modifier 50, which
gives us 307. The last time, to get the word "had" we de-
ducted 167 and added 29; now we reverse this and add
167 and deduct 29, and we have : — 307+167=474 — 29=
445 ; and this carried down column i of page 75, brings us
to the 445th word, which is "to"
We recur to 753, and, adding the modifier 167, we have
920, which gave us, minus 29, the word "the" ("ere the
tragic ending," etc.) We deduct 50 and we have 870, de-
duct 50 again, and we have 820. Commence on Col. i. p.
74, and carry it through that page, containing 532 words
and we have a remainder of 288; deduct 29, as we did
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 161
with the word "the," and we have 259, which carried up
the first column of page 75, brings us to the word "look,"
the i89th word: thus, — 753+1671=920-100=820-532
=288 — 29=259 ; 447 — 2 59—- 1 88+ 1 =189 : "look."
When T published "The Great Cryptogram" I was rid-
iculed for explaining that -if you have a column of say ten
numbers, the 5th word down that column is 5 ; but the
fifth word up that column is not 5 but 6. Hence if I would
indicate the 5th word up a column I had to state it thus : —
io-5=5+ir=6. But while some mocked me for explain-
ing so plain a little thing as that ; others cried out : "Why
see, — when the number will not come out on the right
word, he says 'add one'."
Which illustrates that human nature is sometimes the
meanest and crookedest little thing to be found in all of
God's universe of suns and planets.
We have now got : — "Ere the tragic ending of more-low
I had commenced to look."
"Look" came from 753. The next word therefore is
from 257.
We deducted 100 from 920 to obtain the word
"look;" let us add 100 to 257 and we have 357. To get
the word "I," ("I had commenced,") we added 447 to 753 ;
the number of words on the first column of p. 75. Let us
now add 508, the number of words, exclusive of the clue
word, "reigne," on the second column of the same page
75> to 357, and we have 865. We added 167 to 753 to get
the last word "look." Let us deduct 167 from 865, and we
have left 698. Carry this through the first subdivision of
col. i. p. 76, containing 448 words, and we have left 250,
and the 25Oth word on the next column, 2,76, is the word
"about ',— -"to look about."
162 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
It will be observed as we proceed that while the root-
numbers, as 753 or 257, remain the same, the immediate
alternations are not produced by the same number. Thus
we have
753+197=950 commenced
to
753+167=920 look
about
753+I97=95o among
my
753+167=920 friends
of
753+I97=95o the
Curtain
Observe how 950 alternates with 920 ! Remember that
every one of those numbers is carried up the columns, and
derived from 753 ; and alternates with other numbers, de-
rived from 257, going down the columns.
Can it be possible that all this is the result of accident?
If it is then we may conclude that it is an accident that
the temperature of this globe has, during millions of years,
never fallen low enough to destroy all life by cold; and
tiever risen high enough to burn it all up with heat. If
cunning and multiform adjustments prove the presence
of God's supervising intelligence in the universe, then
these manifold, arithmetical adjustments prove the ex-
istence of a cipher in the so-called Shakespeare plays.
Bacon said : — "I would rather believe all the fables in
the Talmud and the Koran than to think that this univer-
sal frame is without a mind !"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI,AYS.
And I will add : — that I would rather believe all the
fables in the Talmud and the Koran, than to think that
these subtle adjustments of the text, and hundreds of oth-
ers that I shall show hereafter, came about without any
previous arithmetical arrangement.
We return to 753+197=950. From this we deduct 167.
To get the alternate word "look" we added 167. The
modifier 167 deducted from 950 leaves 783. Add 50, mak-
ing 833; carry this through the 1st col. of page 75, (447
words), and we have 386 left. Carry this backward
through col. i page 74 up the column, and it brings us to
the word "among" the I47th word on i, 74. Thus: 753+
i97=95o>— 167=783+50=833— 447 =386—248=138 ;
284 — 138=146+1=147 — "among."
Again we take 257. The last time we added 50 twice.
Now we deduct 50 and have 207, which gave us "tragic"
We add 218 (the subdivision from top of 2, 74 to the end
of the 2cl subdivision) ; and we have 425, (475 we shall
see will give us "shakst" of "Shakst-spur") ; we deduct
248 (2, 74) and this leaves us 177, and this, less 29, gives
us 148, and the I48th word on col. i, 74 is "my"
And incidentally, not as part of the sentence we are
working out, but to show the innumerable adjustments of
this text, we give the following, already alluded to :
down 257+218=475 — 447=28th word 2, 75 "Shakst"
«P 753+167=920—532 (p. 74)=388;
388th word up i, 75=60: "Spurre"
Here it will be observed that 753 alternates with 257.
And 753+167=920, starting from the 1st col. of p. 74, and
carried forward and upward, brings us to the word
" spurre;" while the alternate number, 257, plus 218 car-
ried down the column i, p. 75 and the overplus, 28, car-
164 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
ried down the next column, gives us the word "Shak'st."
The number 167 is the number of words in the middle
subdivision of 2,74; and 218 is the number of the last
word of that subdivision.
It may be objected to that "Shak'st," "Spurre" is not
"Shake-speare." But the man of Stratford did not sign
his name to his will, "Shakespeare," but "Shakspere ;" and
the words "Shak'st," "spurre," probably give the name as
it was pronounced at that time. It is not "shak-est" but
"shak'st." In contemporaneous documents the name is
spelled "Shaksper." (Knight's Biography, p. 118). In
the records of the Town Council of Stratford, during the
supposed poet's life-time, the termination of his name is
spelled "sper," not "speare," 38 times out of a total of
196.
But we return to our work, and we recur to 753, add
167, which gives us again 920. From the last 920 we de-
duct 29. We repeat this step ; 920 — 29=891. We carry
this backward through page 74, containing 532 words, and
we have 359 left ; still going backward we carry 359
through the 2d col. of page 73, 237 words, which leaves
us 122 ; which carried up the 1st col. of p. 73 brings us to
the 48th word "friends."
The number 259 gave us "look;" the number 359 gives
the 48th word,— "friends."
We come again to the root-number 257. The last time
we used it, we added the modifier, 218, thus obtained: —
the 2i8th word is "Never," on the 2d column of page 74;
it is the end of the middle subdivision of 2, 74. The 2i9th
word "My" begins the third subdivision of that column,
and below it there are 29 words : and this modifier 29 we
have 'used several times already. Now as we added 218
CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 165
the last time we used 257, let us deduct from it 29 ; this
leaves us 228 ; as we have been carrying several numbers
through 447 (p. i, 75) let us add 447, and we have 675,
(228+447=675). Now carry this through the 2d col. of
p. 75, containing 509 words, and we have left 166, and
this carried down the same I, 75, brings us to the word
"of."
The last time we used 753, to obtain the word "friends,"
—we added 167, making 920. Now we add 197 and we
have 950. The last word "among" we obtained by going
backward, this time we go forward. To get "among" we
deducted 167 ; let us now add it. Then we have 950+167
=11117. Going forward we carry it through the second
column of page 75, containing 509 words. This leaves
608. Carry this forward through the next column, (i, 76)
containing 498 words, and we have no left. Carry this
forward and upward, for all the 753 words go up the col-
umns, and we find that the i roth word is the 495th word
on the 2d col. of page 76, "the :" "He that was in ques-
tion for the robbery."
We come again to 257 ; we add 29 ; the last time we de-
ducted that modifier; but adding it, we have 257+29=
286; and the 286th word on col. i of p. 75 is the word
"Curtain" the name of the famous play-house, built about
1575, and in use as a theatre until 1623. Many of the so-
called "Shakespeare plays" were acted at the "Curtain"
during the life of the supposed author.
Is it not remarkable that this word' "Curtain" should ap-
pear just where it is wanted, while it has no connection with
anything in the play?
It is brought in thus :
166 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
"Even such a man, so faint, so spiritless,
So dull, so dead in looke, so woe-be-gone,
Drew Priam's Curtaine in the dead of night,
And would have told him Halfe his Troy was burned.
But Priam found the Fire ere he his Tongue."
This is the only time the word "Curtain" occurs in this
play. It is, however, referred to in twelve other plays,
showing that much of the Cipher story referred to the
doings at that famous play-house.
In the passage above quoted more than half the words
are used in the internal cipher narrative, as we shall
show. No wonder Bacon said of himself, that he had
"a nimble mind." It was the most ingenious and subtle
intellect that ever dwelt on this earth.
The "found" in "found the fire" is the same "found"
which we showed went with "out," (389^1 word 2, 75),
to furnish that expression "found out," set forth by us
heretofore. The word "ere'1 — "ere he his tongue," is the
ere of "ere the tragic death of More-low/5 Other cipher
words in that paragraph will appear as we go on.
We recur again to 753. We add 167 and this gives us
920. Carry this through 447 and we have 473 left;
carry this up 2, 75 and it brings us to the 37th word on
the column, the word "to ;" — thus 753+167=920 — 447=
473— 509— 473=36+I=37="2nO-"
We turn to 257 again. We deduct from it 50, leaving
207. To this we add the number of words in the second
column of page 75, 509, and we have 207+509=716; de-
duct 100 and we have 616. Carry this backward through
the first column of page 74, containing 284 words, and
we have 616 — 284=332. Carry this backward again
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 167
through p. 73, and down i, 73, and it brings us to the
word "find," the 95th word, 1,73. Thus: 332 — 237=95.
After a while we shall find the words — ''Bishop of
Worcester" — coming out of the root number 753, carried
up the columns I, 76 and 2, 75, and "Bishop" is the 332d
word on i, 76; and we have just seen that 332 is derived
from 257.
The number 332 was obtained by adding 257 — 50=207
to 509=716, deduct 100=616; and carry this through
i, 74 (284 words) and we have 332, "BISHOP." Then
if we take 257+50=307 and again add 509 and we have
816 left. Carry this again through i, 74 (284),
and then through 2, 74 (248 words) and deduct 29 and
we have 255 left, and the 255th word is "WORCES-
TER."
But if we reverse the movement we have 753 — 167=
586+29=615 — 498=117; and 117 carried up I, 76 brings
us to the 332d word, "BISHOP."
But instead of deducting 167 from 753 let us add it:
we then have 920. Carry this again through I, 76, (498
words), and we have 422 left; deduct 167 from 422 and
we have 255 left ; and carry this up 2, 75, and it brings us
to the same word "WORCESTER." It is a curious fact
that this word "WORCESTER" is the 255th word down
the column, (2, 75), and the 255th word up the column.
Can any one believe that all these infinite adjustments
of the text are the result of accident.
Sir John Whitgift, one of Bacon's tutors at Cambridge,
was the Bishop of Worcester who married Shakspere to
Anne Hathaway or Whatley or whatever her name
might have been, November 28, 1582. The bond to let
them wed without three callings of the bans is still of
168 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
record ; and in it Shakespere's name is given as "William
Shagspere." The first child of this hurried union was
born six months after the marriage. There is no record
of the marriage of Shagspere and Ann Hathaway, but
there is a record of the marriage of William Shagspere
to Ann Whatley.
Some may think that the addition or subtraction of 100
is forced and artificial ; as there is no modifier of 100; but
if we have 257 — 50=207; and 257+50=307, the differ-
ence between the 207 and the 307 is 100. The words are
thus thrown far apart and the difficulty of detecting the
cipher is thereby increased.
Let us restate these last figures :
Down 257 — 50=207 — 1 00= 107+509=616 — 284=332
332, i, 76=Bishop.
Down 257+50=307+509 =816— 284=532— 248= 284
— 29=255, 2, 7$=Worcester.
And again :
Up 753—167=586+29= 615— 498=117; 448— 117
=331-2=332, i, ?6=Bishop.
Up 753+167=920—498= 422—167=255 ; 509— 255
=254+1=255, 2, 7$=Worcester.
In the first instance "Bishop" and "Worcester" come
from 257 minus 50 and 257 plus 50, down the column;
in the other case the words "Bishop" and "Worcester"
are derived from 753 minus 167 and 753 plus 167, u,p the
column. In each instance plus alternates with minus.
Who can doubt that these results could only have been
secured by the most minute and accurate adjustments of
the text, so that the same words could be used, in differ-
ent parts of the narrative, up and down the same col-
umns ?
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 169
We recur to 753. Again we deduct 197; leaving 556;
add to this again 167, and we have 723. Carry this again
through i. 75, which is equivalent to deducting 447, the
number of words on the column, which leaves 276; carry
this up the same i, 75, and it brings us to the I72d word,
"some.-'
Returning to 257, let us deduct 100, and we have left
157; add to this the modifier 218; and we have 375; de-
duct the modifier 192, the number of words above the
end of the first subdivision of column one of page 75, and
we have 183 left ; and the i83d word on the preceding col-
umn 2, 74 is the word "one."
We shall find as we proceed that this modifier, 192, and
its co-relative 253, the number of words below the first
word of the second subdivision of the same column one,
of page 75, play an important part in the cipher.
We recur to 753 and add 167 and 197 and 50. The
last word, derived from 753 (some), was obtained by de-
ducting 197. Now we add 167 plus 197 plus 50, and we
have 1167. We carry this through page 74, (532 words),
and we have 635 left ; we carry this through page 73,
(406 words), and we have 229 left; we carry this up 2,
72, and it brings iis to the 36oth word — "who/'
When the count runs through two contiguous pages
the "clew-word," which unites them, is not counted, as it
is simply a repetition ; but where a root number is car-
ried to a page as a point of departure, then the "clew-
word" is used.
The next word is derived from 257 and goes down the
column. We add 447, the number of words on column
one, page 75, and we have 704. Carry this forward
through the 2d column of page 75, containing 509 words,
170 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
and we have left 195 ; deduct 50, and we have 145 ; and
the I45th word on column two of page 76 is "will."
We return to 753, and deduct 197, plus 167, plus 50,
which gives us 773; to get the word "who" we added,
to 753, 167-1-197+50, making 1167. If we start with that
773 and carry it through the second subdivision of col-
umn i, of page 75, containing 254 words, we have 519
left; and this taken through the second column of page
75, containing 509 words, leaves us 10; which taken up
the same column, (2, 75), brings us to the word "act."
The next word comes from 257. Add 100 and we have
357; add 167 and we have 524; add 50 and we have 574;
add 29 and we have 603 ; carry this through I, 75 and we
have left 156, (603 — 447=156) and the I56th word, car-
ried down i, 75, is "the"
The next word is "part" It comes from 753, and goes
up the column. "Act" was derived from 753 minus 197
plus 167. We reverse this. Instead of deducting 197 we
add it to 703; this gives us 950; and adding 167 we have
1067 ; add to this 447 and we have 1514. We deduct 248
and we have left 1266. We carry this back through p.
74, (532 words), and we have left 734; we carry this
through page 73, (406 words), and we have left 328; we
take this up the next column, (2, 72), and it brings us
to the 26 ist word "part."
We return to 257. The last word, derived from this
root-number, was "the." It was obtained by adding 150,
(3 5os), to 257+167+29. We now add again 150 to 257,
but deduct 167 instead of adding it, and we have the
word numbered 240 on column one of page 74, to-wit:
of. Thus : 257+100=357, 357+50=407— 167=240=
"of."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 171
The next word comes from 753; the last word from
this root — "part," — was derived by adding 167; and the
753d word before that, the word "act" came from 753
minus 197 plus 167. We again deduct 197 from 753, and
we have 556 left. We deduct 29 and we have 527 left.
We carry this through i, 75 (447 words), and we have
80 left; carry this up 2, 75 and it brings us to the word
"a," the 43Oth word on 2, 75.
We recur to 257 again. The last word "of" was the
24Oth word on i, 74. Let us try the 24Oth word on I, 75,
and we find it is "mask."
We add to 753 the modifier 50, and we have 803 ; carry
this through 447, and we have 356 left. Take this up I,
75 and it brings us to the 92d word "and"
We obtained the word "mask," from 257, by carrying
240 down i, 75, containing 447 words. Let us now add
447 to 257 and we have 704. Carry this forward to i, 76,
and take it through the first subdivision of that column,
and we have 704 less 448=256; and the 256th word is
"cloak."
Take the number 753 and carry it through i, 75, (447),
and then carry it up the same i, 75, and it brings us to the
I42d word "for"
We return to 257 and add 197, and we have 454: — car-
ry this through i, 75, (447) and we have 7 left; and the
7th word on i, 75 is "me."
Let us restate this :
down 257+50=307 307, 1,75 ere
UP 753+167=920—29=1:891 89, 1,75 the
down 257 — 50=207 207, 1,75 tragic
up 753— 167=586— 50 359' J>75 ending
down 257+50=307 59, 1,74 of
172
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
UP 753—50=703—447— J92, 1,75
down 257+50=307+167= 226, 1,74
up 753+50=803+447= 430, i,77
down 257+29 — 167 119, 1,75
up 753+197 30, 1,74
down 257+50+167—29 445, 1,75
UP 753+167—100 189, 1,75
down 257+100+508 — 167 250, 2, 76
up 753+197— 167+50= 147, 1,74
down 257 — 50+218= 148, i, 74
up 753+^7—29 48,1.73
down 257 — 29+447 116, 1,75
up 753+i97+i67 495. 2, 76
down 257+29=286 286, i, 75
up 753+167+197—50= 462, 2,72
down 257+50=207+509 95, 1,73
up 753—197+167—447 172, 1,75
down 257 — 100+218 — 192= 183, 2, 74
up 753+^7+197 +50= 36°. 2,72
down 257+4471-704—509=1195
—50= 145, 2,76
up 753— i97+I67+5° 5oo, 2,75
down 257+100=357+167=524-
—447+29+50= 156, 1,75
up 753+i67+i97+447 261, 2,72
down 257+100+50=407 — 167 240, i, 74
up 753—197=556—29=527
—447=80 ; 509—80,= 430, 2, 75
down 257+100=357+50=407—
167=240 240, i, 75
up 753+5<*=8o3— 447=356 ;
447—356=91+1= 92, f,75
More
low
commenced
to
look
about
among
my
friends
of
the
Curtain
to
some
one
will
act
the
part
of
mask
THE CIPHER IN THE SHaKESPEARE PLAYS, 173
257+447=704—448:=
256 256, 2, 76 cloak
«P 753—447=306; 447—
306=141+1 142, 1,75 for
down 257+197=454; 454—447
=7 7, 1,75 me
Here again it will be observed that all these words are
derived from the root-number 505 ; which I have shown
is a modification of the primal root-number 836; which
was obtained by multiplying 76, the number of the third
page on which scene one, of act one of the play of 2d
Henry IV. occurs, by the number eleven, the number of
words in brackets on the first column of page 74, being
the page on which the play of 2d Henry IV. begins.
We alternately add and deduct 248, (the number of
words on the 2d column of the same page, 74) and this
gives us 505+248=753; and 505—248=257. And in
the foregoing sentences, all the 753 words go up the col-
umns, and all the 257 words go down the columns; and
it will be perceived that the movement is regularly alter-
nated. And it will also be observed that the modifiers used
are all found on the second column of page 74, to-wit : 50,
167, 197, 29 and 218.
But the proofs are cumulative. We are only at the
threshold ; and as we go on we hope all doubts will be
dissipated, as to the existence of a cipher in the so-called
Shakespeare Plays, and as to the fact that those plays
were written by Francis Bacon.
174 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
CHAPTER XXV.
The Bacon-Shakspere Controversy 300 Years Ago.
We come now to the proofs that more than three hun-
dred years ago the argument began that Francis Bacon
was the real author of the plays which had been put forth
in the name of William Shakspere.
Let the reader turn to page 74, and he will find the
same root numbers, already given, 753 and 257, clasping
it, from above and below, like the inter-locking fingers of
two hands, the finger tips resting on the words of the
story.
We have already seen something of this, when 753 ad-
vanced up column one, page 75, and brought us to "More"
and 257+50+167 carried through p. 74, gave us the word
"low" — making the word "More-low" — the cipher form
of "Marlow."
We have seen that 753 carried through 447, left a re-
mainder of 306, and that this carried up I, 75 minus 50,
gave us "More," the first part of "More-lozv." Now let
us carry that 306 backward and upward. We pass
through the 2d column of 74, which is equivalent to de-
ducting 248, (the number of words in 2, 74), and this
leaves a remainder of 58 — (753 — 447=306 — 248=58),
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARK PLAYS. 175
— and this, carried up the next preceding column (i, 74)
brings us to the 227th word, "as."
If now we take that same number, 306, and instead of
carrying it backward, into page 74, carry it forward, into
the 2d column of page 75, and count upwards, it brings
us to the word "as," — the 2O4th word on the column.
The intervening number which goes down the column
is 257; and 257 carried down the 2d col. of p. 75, from
which we have just obtained the second "as," brings us
to the word "soon;" — and we have the phrase "as- soon
as."
This is very clear. The number 753 — 447=306, car-
ried forward and upward, gives us the word as and 306
carried backward and upward gives us again the word
"as;" while the alternate number, going down the col-
umn brings us to "soon" Thus :
up 505+248=753—447=306 ;
306—248=58; 284—58=
226+1= 227, 1,74 as
down 505—248=257 257, 2,75 soon
up 505+248=753—447=306 ;
509—306=203+1= 204, 2,75 as
Surely all this could not be the result of accident!
Let us return to 257 and deduct 219, — that is, begin at
the first word of the 3d subdivision of 2, 74, the 21 9th
word; and 219 taken from 257 leaves 38; and the 38th
word on the same column is the word "it."
Again take 753, add 50=803; deduct 447=356; carry
this up i, 75, and it brings us to the 92d word; add 167
and we reach the 259th word, on i, 75, which is "is"
Up to this point we have been treating the first column
of page 75 as a continuous and unbroken whole, and con-
176 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
taining 447 words ; and hence we have deducted 447 from
753, leaving the remainder 306, which carried up the col-
umns gave us "More" "ending," "as," "as," "the" etc.
But the first column of 75 is not an unbroken whole. It is
separated into two parts by the stage-direction — "Enter
Morton;" and the upper part contains 193 words and the
lower part 254 words. If it was reasonable to carry the
cipher number through the whole column, it is also rea-
sonable to carry it through these fragments of the col-
umn.
The last word was "as," obtained by carrying 753 up
the column; therefore the next word must come from
257 and go down the column.
If we add the modifier, 50,^ to 257, we have 307, and if
we add the same again, we have 357, which being carried
through the first subdivision of 193 leaves 164, (357 — 193
=164), which carried down the 2cl column of p. 75 brings
us to the word "bruited" — excluding the words in brack-
ets, as in all the preceding instances.
Let us now recur to the alternate number 753, modify-
ing it by deducting from it 167, just as we will hereafter
add it, and we have the remainder 586. As the last word
was carried through the upper subdivision of col. I, p. 75,
which was equivalent to deducting 193 ; let us now add
193 to 586, and we have 779 ; carry this through I, 75, and
there is left 332. Carry this 332 backward through the
second column of p. 74, which is equivalent to deducting
248 from 332. The remainder is 84; and this taken up
the next column (i, 74) brings us to the 2Oist word
"abroad." Thus we have "bruited abroad;" the one be-
ing minus 193, the other plus 193.
The next word must come from 257 and go down the
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 177
column, and now comes in a modifier, already used sev-
eral times, 29, derived from the last subdivision of col.
two, of page 74; there being 29 words between the first
word of that last subdivision and the bottom of the page.
Add 29 to 207, (the number that gave us the word
"tragic,") and we have 236, and the 236th word, on col.
i, p. 75, is "put." The number 236 gives us "put" the
number 286 gave us "Curtaine"
The next word is "a." It comes from 753 and goes up
the column. The last 753 was less 167 ; we now add 167,
and we have 920. To get the word "abroad" we carried
753 — 167 through the ist subdivision of col. I, of p. 75.
We carry 753+167 through the second subdivision of the
same: — 920 — 254 — 666 ; deduct 447, (i, 75), and we
have left 219; we add 29^248, and 248 carried up I, 75
brings us to the 2OOth word "a."
We return now to 257 and carry it forward and down,
through 2, 74, which contains 248 words; 248 from 257
leaves 9; and the 9th word on the next column, forward,
(i, 74), is "stop."
This gives us "put a stop."
If "how we take 753 — 100=653 — 447— 206; and carry
206 up 2, 74, it brings us to the 43d word "at." Thus, —
753—100=653—447=206 ; 248— 206=42+1=43 ="at."
Then take 257+100, (the last word was 753 — 100) ;=
357 ; and from this deduct the modifier 192, and we have
165 left; and the i65th word on 2, 75 is "once"
"Rumours" is 256 up p. 74, while "at" is 206 up the
same.
This "once" is joined in the text to the word "bruit-
ed :" — "being bruited once," etc.
We recur to 753. The last word "a" came out of
12
178 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
753+167=920. This then comes from 753 — 167=586.
This 586 we carried through the 2d. subdivision of I, 75,
(254) ; this 586 we take through the first subdivision of
i, 75 (193) i 586—193=393; and 393+29=372; and this
carried up 2, 75 brings us to the I38th word "to" Thus,
753—50=703—167=536—193=343+29=372 ; 509—372
=i 37+1=1 ?fi="to."
The next word goes down the column, and comes from
257. We found that the word "lozv" of "More-low" was
obtained by adding the modifier 50 to 257, which gave us
307; and this plus 167 made 474, which carried through
col. 2, page 74, (248 words), brought us to the 226th
word "lozv." If we now deduct 50 from 257, instead of
adding it, we have 207; and this plus 167. gives us 374,
and this carried, in the same way, through 2, 74, (248),
brings us to the I26th word "uncounted." "Low" is
226, "uncounted" is 126: — just 100 difference between
them ; caused by the alternate addition and subtraction of
that 50, to and from 257.
We recur to 753 again. Again we deduct 50, leaving
703 ; again we carry it through i, 75, (447), and we have
256 left. Carry this through 2, 48, (248 words), just as
we did to get "uncounted" and we have left 8; carry
this up i, 74, (we got "uncounted" by going down I, 74) ;
and it brings us to the 277th word, — "rumours."
And thus we have "as soon as bruited abroad put a
stop to uncounted rumours"
The word "stop" is the 9th word on i, 74; add 50, and
the 59th word is "of" ("ere the tragic death of More-
low.") Add another 50 and it brings us to io()="sur-
mises." So "uncounted" the I26th word, is too less
than "low" the 226th word; and "surmises" the iO9th
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 179
word, is 100 more than "stop" the 9th word; and "ru-
mours/'' the 277th word is 50 more than 227, the word
"as" in — "as soon as."
Surely all these extraordinary arithmetical adjust-
ments cannot be the result of accident ! To believe that
will require a greater stretch of credulity than to admit
the existence of a cipher in the text of this play.
And observe, as I said before, how the two hands, the
257 hand and the 753 hand, reach down and up, and the
ringers interlock, around that block, towit : page 74 !
To get "low" we added 167 to 257 plus 50; to get
"uncounted" we added 167 to 257 minus 50. Now let us
take that word "rumours" the 277th word, and add 167
to it, ascending the column; and we have 277 — 167=110;
and the noth word on the same column, is "jealousies."
Thus : 753—50=703+167=870—447=423—248=175 ;
and if we carry 175 up i, 74, it brings us to the noth
word: "jealousies"; thus, 284 — 175=109+1=100: —
"jealousies.'"
Recurring to 257 and deducting 50 and also 29, we
have 178 left; add 192 to this and we have 370, and the
370th word on i, 75 is "and"
Again we return to 753. The last time we added 167 ;
now we subtract it, 753 — 167=586. Add to this 29,
and we have 615; again deduct 167, and we have 448;
add to this 29 and we have 477 ; and 477 carried through
2, 74 (248) and up the preceding column (i, 74) brings
us to the 56th word — "reports."
Hence we have : — as soon as bruited abroad put a stop
at once to uncounted rumors, surmises, jealousies and re-
ports.
This is surely an extraordinary concatenation of sig-
180 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
nificant words, tied together by kindred numbers, and
going alternately up and down the columns, and each of
them the 836th and the 505111 word.
Let us restate all this :
up 753—447=306; 306—
248=58; 284—58=
226+1=227 227, i, 74 as
down 257 257, 2,75 soon
up 753—447=306; 509—
306=203+1= 204, 2,75 as
down 257—219=38 38, 2, 74 it
up 753—447=306+50 =
356; 447—356=91+
1=92+167=259— 259, 1,75 is
down 257+50+50=357—
193— -164 164, 2, 75 bruited
up 753—167=586+193
=779—447=332—
248=84 ; 284—84=
200+1= 20 1, i, 74 abroad
down 257 — 50=207+29=
236 236, 1,75 put
up 753+167=920—254
=666 — 447=2 1 9 f • ^
29=248 ; 447—248=
199+1= 200, 1,75 a
down 257 — 248=9 9, i, 74 stop
up 753—100=653—447
=206; 248 — 206=42
•fi= 43, 2,74 at
down 257+100=357 — 192
=165 165, 2,75 once
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
181
up 753—167=586—50
=536— 193=34^
29=372; 509—372=
137+1=138 138, 2,75 to
down 257 — 50=207+167
=374 — 248=126 126, i, 74 uncounted
up 753—50=703—447
=256; 256—248=8;
284 — 8=276+1= 277, 1,74 rumours
down 257+100=357—248
=109
up 753—50=703—447
=2565256— 248=8 f
167=175; 284—175
=109+-!=
down 257 — 50=207 — 29=
178+192=370
up 753—167=586+29=
615—167=448+29
=477—248=229 ;
284 — 229=85+1= 86, i, 74 reports.
It will be observed that all these words are derived
from 753 and 257; that they all go alternately up and
down the columns ; that they are all found on pages 74
and 75 ; that the modifiers, added or subtracted, are 50,
167, 218, and 29; and the modifiers growing out of page
75, — 192 and 253 ; or, where the count simply passes over
the subdivisions, 193 and 254.
The word "it" is derived from 257 less 219, leaving
38 words. The 2i9th word on 2, 74 is the first word
of the third subdivision; 218 is the last word of the sec-
ond subdivision of 2, 74.
109, i, 74 surmises
no, T, 74 jealousies
370, 1,75 and
182 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
The words "bruited abroad" are derived from 257
minus 193 ; and 753 plus 193.
The modifier 167 is accompanied by the modifier 50;
the last represents the first subdivision of 2,74 ; the other
the second subdivision. Hence "uncounted." comes from
257 — 50+167; while "rumours" is derived from 753 — 50,
and "jealousies" is from 753 — 50 f 167. Thus :
257 — 50+167= "uncounted"
753 — 50+167== "jealousies"
753 — 5°= "rumours"
257—50=207+
29= "put"
257= "stop"
257+100= "surmises"
753—50= "More"
257+50+167 "low"
Will any one believe that all these significant words
came into the text by chance?
If so "the age of miracles" has not yet passed.
Will any one believe that these significant words came
into the text by chance?
If so "the age of miracles" has not yet passed.
I hope that my readers have so far followed my direc-
tions, pencil in hand, and have counted every word for
themselves. If they have they can hereafter save much
labor of this sort by using the numberings on the fac-
similes. If, for instance, they want to find the 352d
word on a column, they have only to take the third hun-
dred mark on the margin; that gives them the 3OOth
word ; then take the next 50 mark, which is indicated by
the figure 50, over the word ; then take the second word
beyond the 50 mark, and they have the 352d word.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 183
In going up a column, instead of counting every word,
they can deduct the number in hand from the total of
words on the column, as shown in the fac-similes, and
add one, for the reasons already given. In this way
they can move along quite rapidly. A little experiment-
ing will satisfy them that the countings given on the fac-
similes are correct.
The reader will have observed that in the results al-
ready given, we note the intrusion of the numbr 192.
Thus "once" came by deducting 192 from 357 ; and the last
"and" was obtained by adding 192 to 207-29. We have
exhausted the results growing out of the first column of
page 75, as modified by the modifiers on column two of
page 74, and we come to the modifiers on page 75 5 towit —
the number of words (192) above the I93d word, the end
word of the first subdivision of the page; and 253, the
number of words between the first word of the second
subdivision of page 75 and the bottom of the column.
If there is a cipher here, we shall find 192 alternating
with 253; the first applied to the words going up the
columns, growing out of 753 ; and the other applied to the
words going down the columns, growing out of 257.
It will be easier to follow these modifications than those
produced by the 2d col. of page 74, because the latter has
three subdivisions, while the first column of page 75 has
but two. Thus :
753+192=945.
753—192=561.
257—253=4.
Let us take that root-number, 561, (753 — 192=561),
184 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
and deduct from it 167, and we have left 394; add 50 and
we have 444; carry this up the second column of page 75,
containing 509 words, and it brings us to the 66th. word,
which is — "which." Thus: 561 — 167=394+50=444;
509 — 444=65+1=66 — "which."
We shall see hereafter that the movement of these num-
bers is reversed, the 753 words going down the columns
and the 253 words going up the columns ; and hence the
394th word on column 2 of page 72 is the significant word
"playes."
We turn now to 257. Let us deduct 253 and we have
4 left; add 167 and we have 171; subtract 100, and we
have 71 left ; add 29 and this gives us 100 ; and going for-
ward down the next column 2,75, we find the looth word
is the word "I."
We recur to 753. The last time, to get the word
"which/' we deducted 192. Let us now add it, and we
have 945. The last time we added 50; therefore, this
time we deduct from 945 the modifier 29. This leaves
us 916. Let us begin at the bottom of the first subdiv-
ision of column one of page 75 ; which is equivalent to
deducting 193 from 916. We then have left 723; go
backward and carry this through page 73, containing 406
words, and we have a remainder of 317; take* this up the
preceding column (2 of 72) and it brings us to the 272d
word — "have." Thus: 753+192=945 — 29=916 — 193
=723— 406=317 ; 588— 317=271+1=272 ="have"
Turning to 257 we again deduct TOO and have 157 left;
add the modifier 253, (ist col. of 1,75) ; (the last time we
subtracted it,) and we have 410; deduct 29, (the last time
we added it) ; and it leaves us 381 ; carry this 381 back-
ward, (the last time we went forward), through the 2d
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 185
col. of p. 74, 237 words, and we have 144 left; and the
I44th word on the preceding column (1,73) is the word
—"been."
We come, back to 753. The last word "have" was ob-
tained by adding 192. Now wTe subtract it, and have 561.
We deducted 100 from 257 in the last example : — now we
add 50 and 50, and we have 66 1. The last 753d word
went backward and upward ; now7 we go forward and up-
ward. We carry it through the 2d col. of page 75,
containing 509 words, and we have 152 left. Still carry-
ing this forward into the next column ( I of 76) and going
up it' we reach the 297th word, which is — "constrained"
We recur to 257; and again deduct 253, leaving us 4;
add 167, as we did to get "I" and we have again 171 ;
add 447 and we have 618; carry this forward; (to get
"been" we went backward,) through 1,76, (448 words),
and it brings us to the I7oth word, on 2,76, the word "to"
The last 753d word was minus 192; now we add 192;
and again we have 945. We added 50 to get the word, —
"constrained" now we subtract its alternative, 29, leaving
916 — (50 is from the top of col. 2, p. 74, and 29 from the
bottom of it, and 167 is between.) We went forward to
get "constrained;" now we go backward, carrying it
through p. 74, containing 532 words ; this leaves 384. We
add 50 and we have 434. We carry this through page 73,
containing 406 words, and we have 28 left ; take this up
the preceding column, and it brings us to the 56ist
word, which is "deny"
Here again, when the movement is reversed and 561
is carried down the column, it brings us to the 56ist
word 2,72 : — "deny." Here we have the significant words
"deny," "playcs."
186 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We recur to 257. The last time but one that we used
it — to get "been" — we added 253 and deducted 29. Now
we again add 253, but we deduct 50, the alternate of 29,
which we deducted, and we have 460. To this we add 448,
found on column one of page 76 and we have 908. Carry
this backward through page 74, containing 532 words, and
we have left 376 ; carry this through the preceding column,
2 of 73, containing 237 words, and we have 139 left;
carry this down the preceding column, (1,73), and it
brings us to the I39th word, "many."
We return to 753. The last time we added 192; now
we subtract it, and we have 561 ; we carry this through
i>75> containing 447 words, and we have 114 left; deduct
29; carry this up 2,74 and it brings us to the i64th word,
which is "times."
And so we have, speaking of "the uncounted rumors,
surmises, jealousies and reports," the words "which I have
been constrained to deny many times"
And we shall see presently why he denied these rumors
and reports ; and consequently why the nineteenth century
is perplexed over the ''Bacon-Shakespeare Controversy."
Wre beg the sceptic to devote his energies to that group
of nine words — "which I have been constrained to deny
many times" Observe the unusual word "constrained"
"Constrained" to do what? To "deny" the uncounted
rumors and reports, which were, as we shall see, to the
effect that he, Francis Bacon, had written the so-called
Shakespere Plays.
Observe that all the 753 numbers reach the words of the
story by adding or subtracting 192 — the upper modifier of
column i of page 75 — and going up the columns ; while
all the 257 words are reached by adding or subtract-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 187
ing 253, the lower modifier of the same column and page,
and going down the columns.
And observe also that the words move alternately 'back-
ward and forward.
And observe also that the only modifiers used are 50
and 167 and 29.
And yet this mechanism tells a most significant fact —
that Francis Bacon was at the time the subject of un-
counted rumors, surmises, etc., to the effect that he was
the real author of the Plays ; and that he was constrained
to deny the truth' of those rumors and reports.
I might pause here and end this book, and justly claim
that I had proved my case ; for no sane man will pretend
that such coherences of numbers, words, facts and rhetoric
could occur in any text by accident.
If there had been, at the time these plays were written,
numerous newspapers, published in London, with an army
of active and zealous reporters, all these "uncounted ru-
mors, surmises, jealousies and reports" would have found
their way into print ; and there would have been long ago
no mystery about the authorship of the great dramas. But
it was an utterly uncritical age ; just emerging out of bar-
barism; with not more than a million people speaking a
tongue which would today be called "English." What-
ever civizilation the country had was reflected from
France; and French culture was but a reminiscence of
ancient Roman development, derived from Greece, and
remotely from Egypt. The first play-house ever built in
London — the "Blackfriars" — was erected in 1576, sixteen
years after the birth of Francis Bacon!
We shall see hereafter that the intellectual activity of
Bacon began at a very early age. It is probable that at
188 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
sixteen he founded the Rosicrncian society. Did he at
that age help the building of the first English theatre?
But let us recur to our work.
The cryptographer was "constrained to deny many
times, the uncounted rumors, surmises, jealousies and
reports."
The reader will have noticed the important part which
the modifier 167 has already played in the cipher story.
That story tells how the cryptographer was constrained
to deny uncounted rumors, etc. About what ? The word
"deny" is the 561 st word on column two of page 72. Let
us carry the number, which gave us "deny," 167 words
further up the column. This is done by deducting 167
from 561; 561 — 167=394; and the 394th word on
that column, as I have shown, (2,72) is: — "playes." ,
"Or is it fantasy that playes upon our eye-sight."
Hence he was constrained to deny something about
some "playes"
This is the only time the word "playes" occurs in this
play, "First Part of Henry IV." ; although it is often dis-
guised under the word "please," which was then pro-
nounced as the Irish peasant of today gives it — as if it was
spelled "plays."
This word "playes," -(the 394th word, 2,72) is often
used in the cipher story, and the text is most cunningly
adjusted to make it cohere by different countings. Thus
we have it as above, growing out of 753+192 ( 1,75) ; thus :
753+192=945— .29=916+50=966+167=1133.
If now we carry this 1133 through pages 74 and 73
and up 2,72, it brings us to "playes." Thus 1133 — 532=
601—406=195 ; 588— 195=393+1 =394?=" playes."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 189
But we shall find that "playes" and 1 133 come out with-
out +192. Thus :
753+100=853 — i67=686f447=i 133, which again
brings us to the word "playes!'
It is easy to see that when the number of words on
column one of page 75 was fixed at 447, that number
had relation to that word "playes" If it had been 446 or
448, or any other number, it would not have matched with
"playes."
This last example, growing out of 753, (not plus or
minus 192), has its co-relative in 257. If we add 218 to
257 we have 475, (which gave us "shaks't"), and this car-
ried through page 73, 406 words, leaves us 69; and the
69th word on column 2 of p. 72, (the same column on
which the word "playes" occurs), is "these" Thus :
down 2574-218=475 — 406
=69 2,72, 69= "these"
«P 753+100=853—167
=686+447=1133—
532=601—406= 2,72, 394= "playes."
195 ; 588—195=393 +!=394
Or, plus the modifiers on col. I, page 75, we have :
down 257+253=5101-50=
560+447=1007—
—532=475 ; 475-
—406=69 2,72 — 69= "these."
up 753+192=945—29=
916+50=966+167=
H33; H33—532=
6oi — 406=195 ; 588
— 195=393+1=394 2,72—394= "playes."
190 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
It will be worth while for the sceptic to study these
figures. Note the precise and delicate adjustments where-
by two different countings are made to terminate on the
same words, 69 and 394, on the same column. See Jiow
the absence of 253 is compensated for by the addition of
447, to produce ' 'these," in one case; and how the addi-
tion of 447 makes up for the absence of 192 in the other
case, to give us the word "playes."
The man who would think all this came about by
chance would believe that the relations of the multiplica-
tion-table were blown into shape by the west wind.
But this is not all.
We recur to 753, without the modifier of page 75 ( 192) ,
and we have 753+50=803+167=970. We add again
447 and it gives us 1417. As "playes" was obtained by
going backward from 2,74, we now go forward to 2,76.
This column is divided into two parts by the stage direc-
tion:— "Enter Chief Justice and servant." Above the
last word of the upper section are 456 words ; below it are
147 words. Deduct 456 from 1417 and we have 961 ;
carry this forward through the next col. (1,77 — 577
words), and we have 384 left; we carry this forward up
the next column (2,77), and it brings us to the 228th
word, which is "written." Thus we have :
*
up 753+50=803+167=
970+447=1417 2,77—228= "written"
down 257+218=475 — 406
=69 2,72 — 69 "these"
up 753+50=803+50=
853— 167=6861-447
=1133= 2,72—394= "plays"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 191
Note how "written" and "playes" both come out of
753+50=803 : but "written" is derived from 803+167 ; and
"playes" comes from 803 — 167+50.
Now let us move forward so as to take in the modifiers
on column one of page 75 — viz., 192 and 253 ; and then
we have the following:
up 753— i92=
=1070 — 100=970
+167=1137—29=
noS — 147=961.961
577=384 5611—384
=227+1=228 2,77 — 228= "written"
down 257+253=510+50=
560+447=1007—
532=475—406=69 2,72—69= "these"
UP 753+T92 — 29f5o
+167=1133—532=
601—406=195 ; 588
— i95=393+I=394 2,72—394= "playes"
Observe that the first "written" comes from the 456
words above the last word of the first subdivision of col.
2 of page 75 ; and the second "written" from the 147
words below that last word. The difference between 456
and 147 is 309 ; add 50 and we have 359 ; deduct 167 and
we have 192, which is the exact number added to get the
second "written ! !"
Clearly, before Francis Bacon put pen to paper to write
these plays, he had mapped out the cipher story ; and had
his pages blocked off in little squares, each square num-
bered according to its place from the top or the bottom of
the page. He next adjusted the length of his columns,
192 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
and their subdivisions, to enable him to use significant
words like "written," "playes," "shakst," "spur," etc., over
and over again. And, when all this was in place, he pro-
ceeded to write out the plays; using his miraculous in-
genuity to bring the right words in the proper positions.
For instance, the word "written" is thus brought in :
"Do you set down your name in the scrowle of youth,
that are written down old with all the characters of age."
We shall see hereafter how this word "characters" re-
fers to "the striking and original characters" in the plays.
Observe how 753+504-167=970 ; while 753—192=561
+509— 100=970 !
As 257 plus 253, carried down 2,72, gave us the word
"these;" we turn to 257 minus 253=4 ; add 447 to 4 and
it gives us 451 ; and this, plus 29, is 480; and this carried
forward and down, as the other was carried backward and
down, brings us to the 48oth word, on 1,76, which is
"have."
This "have" has been derived from the modifier 253, on
col. i, p. 75, thus : 257 — 253=4+447=451,4-29=480. But
the word "these" was also obtained without using the 253 ;
thus: 257+218=475 — 406=69(2,75)"^^." Now let
us see if this same word "have" ("have written these
playes") comes out without subtracting 253. We added
218 to 257 to make 475 ; let us now deduct it and we have
257 — 2181=339; add this to (2,75) 508, and we have 547;
add 100 and it gives us 647 ; deduct 167 and we have 480,
and the 48oth word is that same word "have" (1,76).
Thus we percieve what infinite adjustments arc in this
text, when the words "have written these playes" come
out of 753 and 257 plus and minus 192, and plus and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 193
minus 253 ; and also come out of 753 and 257, without any
connection with 192 and 253 !
As 753 — 192=561 gave us "written;" turn to 753+192
=945, and carry it backward, as "written" was obtained
by going forward. We add 50, (we deducted 50 twice
to get "written,") and deduct 29+167, and we have 1033;
carry this through pages 74 and 73 and up 2,72, and it
brings us to the 494th word, ("playes" was the 394th
word), which is ?L"
And so we have, in regular order, that Bacon was "con-
strained to deny the uncounted rumors, surmises, jealous-
ies and reports" that "I have written these playes."
But the vastness of the cipher story oppresses me. I
had meant to give only a few examples, to show that 505+
248=753, alternating with 505 — 248=257, produced part
of the internal narrative ; and then go on to show that
505+284 and 505—284; and 505+167 and 505 — 167, etc.,
also carried a large part of the story; but the 753-and-
257-cipher grows under my hand to boundless pro-
portions.
13
194 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Why Bacon Denied the Authorship of the Plays.
It has been often asked : Why, — if Bacon wrote these
great plays, — did he not claim them ?
In answering this question I am constrained to abridge
my work, and hereafter give only fragments of the cipher.
Let us take 257 again, and, instead of adding the modi-
fier 253 to it, deduct 253. This leaves 4; add 532, the
number of words on page 74, and we have 536, deduct
the modifier 50 and we have 486 ; carry this through page
73 (406 words,) and we have 80 left; add 167 and it
gives us 247; add 29 and we have 276, which on the
next column (2,72), is the word "I."
We recur to 753 ; deduct 192, and we have 561 ; add
col. 2, p. 75 (509 words), and we have 1070; deduct 100
and this gives tis 970, (the same 970 which twice gave us
"written") ; add 167 and we have 1137; again add 167
and we have 1304, which, minus 29, leaves 1275. We
saw, in obtaining the word "written" that there were
147 words below the stage direction on the 2d column of
page 76. Deduct 147 from 1275 and we have 1128 left;
carry this forward and up through 1,77 (577 words),
and we have 551 left, and the 55ist word, up the next col-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 195
umn (2,77), is the 6ist word — "would." (611—
551=60+1=61).
Or, let us put it in another form :
We found that the word "written" was the 228th word
on 2,77. Deduct 167 from 228 and we have 61—
"would" Which means that the number which gave us
"written" when 167 is added to it, brings us to the word
"ivould."
The last 257th word ("I"), was obtained by deducting
253 from 257 and adding 532 (p. 74) to the remainder.
We now add 253 to 257, making 510, and again add 532,
and we have 1042. To get "I" we went backward, from
the 2d col. of page 73 ; let us now go forward from the
2d col. of page 76. It is one page backward from 1,75
to 73 ; and one page intervenes between 1,75 and 2,76.
Deduct 29 from 1042; and we have 1013; deduct 50
and we have 963. Start from the top of 2,76 and go
through that column, 604 words, and we have 359 left;
and the 359th word, down the next column (1,77), is
"rather." ".
The last 753 word was minus 192 ; this time it will be
plus 192, which gives us 945. Deduct 29 and we have
916. Again deduct 532 (p. 74), and we have 384 left;
add 50 and it gives us 434. This is the number which
gave us "deny" Now we add 248 (2,74) to it, and we
have 682. Carry this through page 73 (406 words),
and we have 276 left; add 100 and we have 376; carry
this up 2,72 a*nd it brings us to the 21 3th word, which is
"die." (588—376=212+1=213.)
This gives us : "I would rather die"
We recur to 257 and again deduct 253, which leaves
us 4; add to this the 2d col. of p. 75, which contains 509
196 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
words, and we have 513. The last 257 word went for-
ward ; this goes backward. The last word "rather" be-
gan at 2,76; this begins at 2,74. Deduct 406 (p. 73) and
we have 107 left; carry this backward to the preceding
column; and the io7th word on it (2,72) is "A"
The last 753 word "die" was plus 192. The next is
minus 192. Take 192 from 753 and we again have 561.
Add 532 (p. 74), as we did to get the words "/" and
"rather" and we have 1093 (561+532—1093) ; add the
modifier 147 on 2,76, (the same 147 we used to obtain
"written") and we have 1240, (1093+147=1240) ; carry
this through 2,76 (604) and 1,77 (577) and we have 59
left, which taken up 2,77, brings us to the 553d word,
2,77, which is "thousand"
Again we add 253 to 257 and have 510. We have just
used 147, the number of words on column two of page 76,
below the 1st subdivision, ending with the word "wived."
Above that word there are 456 words. Add 456 to 510
and we have 967; add 167 and we have 1134; carry this
through page 72, which contains 1083 words, and we have
51 left, and the 5ist word, carried down the preceding
column (2,71), is "deaths" And this gives us:
"I zvould rather die a thousand deaths"
"Death" is a common word in the plays ; but "deaths"
is quite rare. It occurs but four other times in 1st Henry
IV., and only once in 2d Henry IV.
The last 753 word, going up the columns, was from
753 minus 192. The next therefore wilt be from 753
plus 192=945. From the last 945 we deducted 29=916.
Now we add it, making 974. We deduct 1,76 (448) and
we have 526 left; and carrying it up the next column
(2,76) it brings us to the 79th word, — "then"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 197
"Then" was used in that day for "than." See 2ist
line, 1,76, — (Folio 1623) :
"More then that being which was like to be."
(Is there any sense to this? Does it grow out of the
necessities of the cipher?)
We return to 257. The last time we added 253 to it;
now we deduct it and we have 4 left. Add to this 955,
the number of words on page 75, less the clew- word, and
it gives us 959. We have just been adding 532, page
74, to 4; now we add page 75. Carry this through 1,76,
(498 words), and there is left 461 ; and the 46ist word
on the preceding column (2,75), is "bring"
We recur to 753 minus 1 92=56 114-167=728+50
=778. Carry this through 2,75 (509); and we have 269
left; add 50 and carry this up the next column (498) and
it brings us to the iSoth word "such."
Again we add 253 to 257 and we have 510. Add to
this the same 1,76 (498), and we have 1008; deduct 167
and we have 841. Carry this through page 74, (532
words), and we have 309 left; carry this through 2,73
(237 words), and we have 72 left; and the 72d word, on
the next column (1,73), is "great."
We return to 753. This time we add 192 and we
have 945 ; add 29 and we have 974. Carry this through
1,76 (448), and we have 526 left; the word "then" or
"than" came from this same 526 ; then it was carried for-
ward, and up 2,76; now it is carried backward through
2>75 (5°9 words), and 17 is the remainder; and this,
still moving backward, and carried up 1,75 brings us to
the 43 ist word, which is; "disgrace." And so we
have "/ would rather die a thousand deaths than bring
such great disgrace."
198 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
The next word comes from 257 minus 253, towit : 4.
We again add 532, making 536; but go forward instead
of backward, plus 50, through 1,75 (447 words), leaving
139 plus 29, making 168; and the i68th word on 2,75
is "and."
The last 753 word was plus 192. Let us now deduct
192 from 753 and we have 561 left ; add 100 and we have
66 1 ; add 532 and it gives us 1193, minus 29, it is 1164,
minus 253 (2d subdiv. 1,75) it is 911. Carry this through
406 (page 73), and we have a remainder of 505; carry
this up from the bottom of 2,72, from the 588th word,
and it brings us to the 84th word, 2,72, which is "ig-
nonimy" — in the text spelled "ignomy"
And so we have "bring such great disgrace and ignom-
iny/' And note that "ignomy" is the 5<D5th word from
the bottom of 2,72 ; and 505 is a root-number. Show-
ing that ''ignomy" is used more than once.
We return to 257 and add 253 again, giving us 510 ; add
loo and we have 610+50=660: — carry this through ist
subdiv. of 1,76 (448 words), and we have 212 left; and
the 2 1 2th word on the next preceding colum, (2,75), is
"upon."
Now take 753 and add 192, and we have 945 ; deduct
29, (we added it last time), and we have 916; carry it
through page 74 (532 words), and we have 384 left;
carry this up through the second column of page 73 (237
words), and it leaves 147, and this taken up 1,73 brings
us to the 23d word, on 1,73, which is "the!'
We return to 257 and deduct 253 and we have 4 left.
Add 447 to 4, and we have 451 ; carry this through page
73 (406 words), and we have 45 left; and the 45th
word, on the preceding column (2,72), is — "great"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 199
We come back to 753 and deduct 192 and again we
have 561 ; we add 447 and we have 1008 ; add 100 and
we have 1108+50=1158; carry this through 2,76 (604
words), and we have 554 left; carry this up the next
succeeding column, 1,77 (577 words), and it brings us
to the 24th word, on the column, which is the word :
"name."
Take 257 and add 253; it makes 510; add 509, and we
have 1019. Commence at top of 2,76, and go down the
column (604 words), and we have 415 left; deduct 167
and we have 248 ; add 50 and 29 and we have 327 ( 1,77) ,
and that is the word "of"
We recur to 753+1921=945 ; deduct 167 and we have
778 ; deduct 50 and we have 728 ; deduct 29 and we have
699. Carry this through 2,75 (509 words), and we
have 190 left; take this up 2,75 and it brings us to the
32Oth word — "my"
Take 257 and deduct 253 and we have 4 left ; add 508
(2,75), and we have 512; add 100 and we have 612; de-
duct 29 and it gives us 583; carry this through page 74
(532 words), and it leaves a remainder of 51 ; and the
5ist word on the next column (2,73), is: — "noble."
Deduct 192 from 753 and we have 561 ; add 100 and we
have 661 ; add 167 and it gives us 828; carry this through
1,76 (448 words), and we have left 380; carry this for-
ward and upward, through the next column (2,76), and
it brings us to the 225th word, which is "father."
Add to 257 253, and we have 510; add to this 448, and
it gives us 958 ; deduct 50 and we have 908 ; deduct 447
and we have 461, and the 46ist word on 1,76, is "sir"
As father came from 753 minus 192 ; we now take 753
plus 192, and we have 945 ; deduct again 29 and it gives
200 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
916. We added 100 to 561, to get "father;" we add 100
again to 916, which gives 1016; add the modifier, 193
(1,75), and we have 1209, plus 50 equals 1259, (we de-
ducted its alternate, 253, to get ignominy") Carry
this 1259 through page 73 (406 words), and we have
853 left; carry this through 2,72 (588 words), and we
have 265 left. Carry this up 1,72 and it brings us to the
23Oth word, which is "Nicholas."
And observe another cunning adjustment : 505+248=
753 and plus 100, it is 853 ; and 853 carried through 2,72
and up 1,72 brings us to the same word: "Nicholas"
Thus 753, plus 192, and 753 without the modifier 192,
come to the same point in the text: the word "Nich-
olas"— the name of Francis Bacon's father! '
And if we take 257, and, (without adding 253 to it,)
deduct 50, leaving 207 ; add 447 to it, making 654 ; carry
it through the first subdivision of 1,75, containing 193
words, and we have 461 left; and the 46ist word (1,76),
is the same word "Sir" which we obtained by adding
253 and deducting 447 from it, — not adding 447 to it!
Consider this in connection with "have written these
"plays," given heretofore, and ask yourself if it is all acci-
dent.
Reflect upon the corning together, through the same
numbers, of such significant words as "rather" "die"
"thousand" "deaths" "bring" "ignominy" "upon"
"great," "name," "father," "Sir," "Nicholas."
Why does "Nicholas" come in just where it is needed,
like "Curtain," "Bishop," "Worcester," etc., etc. If there
is not an arithmetical cipher here, then this is the most
extraordinary text ever seen in the whole history of liter-
ature; and the sceptic will be tempted to declare: — "the
very devil is in it."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 201
And who was "Sir Nicholas Gawsey," referred to in
the play ? Was there such a person ? Was not the name
invented to bring in "Nicholas" just where it was want-
ed?
But here we have "I would rather die a thousand
deaths than bring such great disgrace and ignominy upon
the great name of my noble father, Sir Nicholas"
And all this found on six succeeding pages (except one
word), of the Folio of 1623, derived from 836 and 505, by
alternately adding and subtracting 248; and alternately
carried right and left, and alternately taken up and down
the columns; the plus 248 going always up the columns
and the minus 248 being always carried down the col-
umns ! The only modifiers used being 50, 167 and 29.
"Sir" of "Sir Nicholas," was derived from 257+253.
The alternate word comes from 257 — 253=4. ; Add to 4
page 73 (406), and we have 410, +100=510. Add 167
and we have 6777+50=727. Carry this through 2,72
(588 words), and we have 139 left. Carry this down
the next preceding column and the I39th word is —
"and."
The last 753 word, "Nicholas" came from 753 plus 192 ;
we use now the alternate: 753 — 192=561. To get
"Nicholas" we added 193; we now deduct it from 561,
leaving 368; we deduct 100 (we added 50 to get "Nich-
olas") leaving 268; we carry this up 1,76 (498), and it
brings us to the 23ist word ; carry it 29 words farther up
the column and it reaches the 2O2d word, which is "the"
The last 257 word was minus 253 ; we now add 253 and
we have 510. Add 50 and we have 560; add 167 and it
gives us 727. Note how 257+253=510, and 257 — 253=
44-406=410+100=510. Carry this 727 through page 74
202 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
(532 words), and the remainder is 195; and the I95th
word on 2,74 is — "name."
We recur to 7531-192—945. The last time we used 945,
(to get. "Nicholas") we deducted 29; now we add it,
and have 974. We deduct 100, leaving 874. We add
167, which gives us 1041 ; minus 50 it is 991 ; carry this
through 2,76 (604 words,) and we have 387 left; carry
this up the succeeding column (1,77), and it brings us to
the 19 ist word: — "of"
The last 257 word was plus 253 ; we now deduct it and
have 4 left. To 4 we add 532, making 536 ; plus 167 it is
703; minus 50 it is 653. Carry this through page 73
(406 words), and it leaves 247; and the 247th word on
2,72 is "be" As I have already shown, "Be" in that age
was pronounced like Ba or Bay. (See F. G. Fleay's
"Shakespeare Manual," page 66.)
This time we deduct 192 from 753 and we have 561 ;
deduct 50, and it leaves 511 ; add 457 (2,76) and it gives
us 968; deduct 29 and we have 939; carry this through
i, 77 (577 words), and we have a remainder of 362 ; carry
this up 2, 76, and it brings us to the 243d word — "can"
Fleay (ibid) tells us that a, in Bacon's time, had the
sound of a in "father." The Englishman of today, gives
it the sound of "o"
We recur to 257+253=510. We deduct 50 and it gives
us 460. The last time we added 50 to 510=560, to get
"name" We deduct 248 (2, 74), which leaves 212; mi-
nus 167 it gives us 45 ; and the 45th word on I, 76, is
"which."
The last 753 word "can" was obtained by deducting 192
from 753=561. We now add it and have 945. We add
29 and it gives us 974 ; we add 50 and we have 1024 ; de-
THF CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 203
duct 167 and it leaves 857; carry this through page 73
(406 words), and we have 451, and this taken up 2,72,
from 589, brings us to the 139th word — "hath."
We recur to 257 minus 253 and have 4 left; add 447
and we have 451, add 167=618; carry this through 2,73
(237 words), and we have 144 left; and the I44th word
on the preceding column is "beene."
Again we deduct 192 from 953 and we have 561 left;
add loo and we have 661 ; carry this through page 74
(532 words), and it leaves 129; take this up the preced-
ing column (2, 73) and it brings us to the iO9th word —
"honorable/'
We recur to 253+257=510; add to this 509 (2, 75),
and we have 1019+29.= 1048; carry this again through
page 74 (532 words), and it leaves 516; carry this
through page 73 (406 words), and it leaves no; deduct
50 and we have 60, and the 6oth word on 2, 72, is the word
"in."
We come back to 753+192=945; deduct 29 and we
have 916 ; less 50 it is 866 ; we add the first subdivision of
T> 75> I93 words and we have io59f 100=1159. Carry
this through p. 73 (406), and we have left 753; which
is the original number. The text is thus arranged so that
753 might be used in the story, without or with 192. Carry
753 through 2, 72 (588 words), and we have 165 left;
carry this up I, 72 (494), and it brings us to the 33Oth
word, which is "arms."
We now take 257 and deduct 253, which leaves 4 ; add
to this as heretofore, 532, and we have 536; carry this
through i, 75 (447 words), and we have 89 left; and the
word on 2, 75, is — "ever"
We recur to 753 — 192=561 ; we add 50 which gives
204 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
us 6n ; we add 448 to this and we have 1059; carry this
through 2, 75 (509 words), and it leaves 550; carry this
through the next column (448) and we have a remainder
of 1 02 ; and this taken up the next column (2, 76), brings
us to the 5O3d word, which is — "since."
We add 253 to 257 and we have 510; add 509, — and
again we have 10194-50=1069. Carry this through i, 77
(577 words), and we have left 492; deduct 167 and we
have 325, and the 325th word on the same column is —
"the"
We come now to 753+192=945 ; deduct 100, it leaves
us 845 ; again deduct 100 and we have 745 ; deduct 167
and we have 578; carry this through 2, 75 (509), and
the remainder is 69; and this carried up 2, 75 brings us
to the 441 st word — "conquest"
We are told that Sir Nicholas Bacon was "descended
from an ancient and honorable family in Suffolk." As
there were but 423 years between the death of William
the Conqueror, and the birth of Sir Nicholas, in 1510, the
pedigree of the family could have readily been preserved,
from the days of the "Conquest."
And so we have: "I would rather die a thousand
deaths than bring such great disgrace and ignomy upon
the great name of my noble father, Sir Nicholas, and the
name of Bacon, .which hath been honorable in amis ever
since the Conquest"
Nearly all honors in those rude times were derived
from the profession of arms.
And then Bacon proceeds to refer to his father's great
services to King Henry :
We abbreviate. 753 — 192=561+50=611+532=1143
— 447=696 — 509=187; carry this up i, 76 from 498 and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 205
it brings us to 312+50=362, and the 362(1 word on I, 76 is
"King"
257— 253=4+532=536+5o =586—447=139, and the
1 39th word, 2, 75, is "Henry."
753+192=945+509=1454— 50=1404+29=1433. Carr>
this through p. 73 (406 words), and 2, 72=588 words
(total of 994 words), deduct this from 1433 and we have
439 left; carry this up 1,72 (494 words), and it brings
us to the 56th word, I, 72, which is "King."
5io+509=ioi9f447=i466 — 1102 (p. 76) =364 — 167
=197 (i,77)="°f"
The word "King" came from 753+192=945. We now
deduct 192 from 753 and we have 561 ; add 604 (2, 76),
and we have 1165+29= 1194. Carry this through p. 36
(406 words), and we have 788 left; carry this up 2, 72
588 words and we have 200 left; carry this up I, 72
(494 words), and it brings us to the 295th word, which is
"England."
And here I would call attention to the fact that if we
add the modifier 50 to 56, the word "King™ (1,72) we
have 106, and the io6th word on 1,72 is the word
"threatens"
Who threatens?
Let us take 510 (257+253), deduct 50 and we have
460; add 167, and we have 627; add to this 509 (2,75)
and we have 1136; carry this through p. 74 (532), and
we have 604 left; take this through the preceding page,
73, (406) and we have 198 left and the I98th word,
(2,72), is "'termagant."
This is the pet name by which Bacon designates Queen
Elizabeth.
To get "threatens" we used 753+192=945+509
+50. The alternate word therefore comes from 753 — 192
206 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
= 56i+509=io7o+ioo-=i 170+167=1337 +50=1387+29=
1416. If we carry this through 457 (ist sec. 2,76) and
through 1,77, (577 words) we have 382 left; and this
carried up 2,76 brings us to the 23Oth word (2,77) which
is— "old."
And so we have : — "the old termagant threatens!'
"Threatens" came from 753+192=945. The alternate
number is 561. This plus 498, (1,76), gives us 1059;
and this carried through the next column, (603), leaves
456 and this taken up 1,77, brings us to the I22d word,
the word : — "hang!"
Let us take again 945 and again add 509=1454, which
starting from 2,73 brought us to the word "threatens."
But instead of starting from 2,73 let us begin at 2,74.
Carry 1454 through page 74 (532 words) and we have
922 left; carry this through page 73, (406 words), and
we have 516 left. To get "threatens" we deducted 100
from 1454; we repeat this, and we have 416 left. We
carry this up 2,72, and it brings us to the I74th word,
which is : — "imboivell"
We now have 257 — 253=4+509=513+167^=680. Take
this to 2,76 and carry it through that column (604) and
we have 76 left ; add 29 and it brings us to the io5th word,
J»77» which is "me."
And so we have the "old termagant threatens to hang
and imboivell me"
We come to 561 and add 509, and we have 1070; de-
duct 100 and we have 970. Carry this through 1,76
(498) and we have 472 left. Take this through the ist
section of 2,76, (456) and we have 16 left; carry this up
from the bottom of the ist col. of page 77, (577), and it
brings us to the 562d word, — "at"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 207
We recur to 510, deduct 100 and we have 410; add
the modifier 254, (1,75), and we have 664; deduct 29
and we have 635; carry this through 1,75 (447) and
there are 188 left; and the i88th word (2,75) is "once."
The next number is 945. We add 508 (2,75) and
we have 1453. We carry this through page 76, contain-
ing 1 102 words, and the remainder is 351 ; and this taken
up the succeeding column (i,77). brings us to the 227th
We return to 257 — 253=4; to this we add p. 74 (532
words), and we have 536; deduct 167, and we have 369
left; deduct 50 and we have 319; and the 3i9th word on
1,75 is "it."
We come to 561, add 50, making 611, minus 29, gives
us 582; carry this up 2,76 (604 words) and we reach the
23d word : — "is"
We return to 510; deduct 167=343; deduct 100=243;
add 1,75 (447) and we have 690; deduct 29 and we
have 661. Carry this through page 74 (532 words), and
we have 129 left; and the I29th word on 2,73 is
"shozvn."
We recur to 945; again add 508, making 1453. Carry
this to 1,77; carry it through page 77 (1188 words), and
it leaves 265, and this plus 29=294; carry this through
the ist section of 1,78 (162) and we have 132; and this
carried up the next column (2,78), brings us to the 33ist
word:— "that"
We come back to 4 (257 — 253=4) ; add 167=171+50
=23i ; and the 22ist word, 2,74, is "I."
We return to 561 ; add 508=1069; deduct 167 and we
have 902 left. Take this through page 1,76 (448 words),
and we have 454 left. Carry this through 2,74
208 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
(248 words), and we have 206 left; carry this up the
preceding column (1,74), and it brings us to the 79th
word : — "prepared."
.We come again to 510, and add 167 and we have 677;
deduct 29 and we have 648. Again carry this through
1,76 (448 words), and we have 200 left; and the 2OOth
word on 2,74 is — "these."
We again take 945, but instead of adding 508 we deduct
it and have 437 left; we add 167 and have 604. Carry
this through section I of 2,76 (456 words), and we have
148 left; deduct 29 and we have 119; and 119 taken up
col. 2,76 brings us to the 486th word, which is
"please" pronounced by Englishmen at that time as
"plays;" even as the Irish peasant renders it to-day.
Wre again deduct 253 from 257 and have 4 left, and
the 4th word on 1,74 is — "for."
We recur to 561 and carry it through page 73 (406
words), and we have 155 left, add 50 and it gives 205;
carry this up 2,72, and it brings us to the 384th word, —
"the."
The next word comes from 5 iOf 509=1019 — 50=969
— 29=940. Carry this through 1,75, (447 words), and
we have 493 left, and the 493d word, on the next column
(2,75), is,— 'stage."
The next word comes from 945. Add 100 and we have
1045; add 508 and we have 1553. Carry this through
pages 74 and 73, minus 29, and it brings us to the 3d
word on 2,72, to-wit: — "for."
We recur to 257 — 253=4. Again we add 532=536 ;
we add 167 and have 703; carry this through 1,72, (588
words), and we have 115 left; and the H5th word down
the preceding column (1,72) is: — "pay."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 209
The next word comes from 561 less 509, it is 52; and
this taken up 2,75 brings us to the 458th word : — "and."
We return to 510; again add 167 and we have 677.
Carry this through 1,75 (447 words), and the remainder
is 230; and the 23Oth word on the preceding column
(2,74) is — "furnished"
The next word is from 945. Add 50 and we have 995.
Carry, this through 1,76 (448 words), and we have 547
left; add 167 and we have 714. Carry this through
1,75, (447 words), and we have 267 left. Carry this
backward still, through 2,74, (248 words), and we have
19 left; and this carried up the preceding column, gives
us the 266th word -.—"them"
We come to 4 again; add 447 and we have 451, plus
167=618. Carry this through page 73 (496 words), and
the remainder is 212 ; and the 21 2th word, on the preced-
ing column, is — "to."
We recur to 561 again ; again we add 509 to it=io7o,
minus 29 we have 1041 ; add 167 and we have 1208. Car-
ry this through 2,76 (603 words), and we have 605 left;
take this through the next column, (577, i,77) and we
have 28 left; and 28 carried up the next column (2,77),
brings us to the 584111 word, — "Fillop," which is the
cryptographer's disguise for "Philip." The word is
dragged in. Falstaff says, — "If I do, fillop me with a
three-man-Beetle." A strange kind of a fillop!
We come to 510 again. We add 100, making 610; we
add 447, making 1057 — 29=1028. We carry this through
2,76 (604) and we have left 424; and the 424^1 word, on
2,75, is — "hence."
Again 945. Minus 509 gives us 436; deduct 100 and
we have 336; deduct 29 and we have 307. Carry this
14
210 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
through 2,74 (248 words), and we have 59 left; carry
this up the next preceding column, and we reach the 226th
word (1,74), which is — "low"
And so we perceive that the columns were so arranged
that "low" made the last syllable of "More-low," going
down the column, and the last syllable of "Hence-low,"
going up the column!
Philip Henslowe was the manager of the theatres at
which most of the Shakespeare Plays were first produced.
He also acted as negotiator between actors and play-
writers. His "Diary" is still preserved at Dulwich col-
lege. In it we find this memorandum :
"14 December 1602, for a prologue and epil. for the play
of Bacon, for the corte, 55."
Did this mean that Henslowe paid five shillings to some
one for a prologue and epilogue to a play written by
Bacon, and exhibited before the Court that day? Re-
member this was Henslowe's private memorandum book,
which he never expected would see the light. (Collier's
Dram. Poetry, Vol. 3, p. 229).
And, again, we find that the text is so arranged as to
bring in the words ''Philip Hence-low" once more. We
saw them come out at the call of the modifiers 753 and 257
plus and minus 192 and plus and minus 253. We will
now see that the numbers 753 and 257, (without 192 or
253), bring out the same words.
Take the upper section of 1,76, 456 and add it to 753
and it gives us 1209. Carry 1209 through 2,76, (604
words), and we have 605 left; take this through the next
column, 1,77, (577 words), and we have 28 left; carry
this up the next column 2,77, and it brings us to the word
—"fillop."
CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 211
Now take 257 and add 167 and we have 424, and the
424th word, on 2,75, is "Hence."
Now take 753 and deduct 446 (1,75) for just as 193
became 192; 254, 253; 457, 456, etc., we shall see that
447 becomes sometimes 446; 753 — 446=307; carry this
through 2,74 (248 words), and we have 59 left, and the
59th word up 1,74 is the 226th word, — "low"
Nay, more, — 257+167=424+50=474; and this carried
through 2,74 (248), leaves 226, which taken down the
preceding column, 1,74, brings us to the same 226th
word, "low/' the last syllable of "More-low." So that
page 74 is arranged in such shape that the same 226th
word, "low" comes from 257 going down the column and
from 753 going up the column. And 257+167 yields
424 — "Hence" and 257+167+50=474, gives us "low" the
two syllables of Henslow's name !
A single word more or less on the page would have
thrown all these counts out !
And here \ve see that the word "fillop" as the repre-
sentative of the word "Philip,*' was not an ingenious de-
vice of mine, but that it is attached to "Hence-low"
through two distinct countings. It is also used for
"Philip the second," the cruel Spanish king. "Second"
is found 2nd. H. IV. 2,3.
"(Second to none) unseconded by you."
Lack of space, (if I would not make this book too
bulky), prevents me from giving further extracts from
this part of the cipher story; but it seems to me that I
have presented enough to show every candid mind that
there is a cipher in this play.
The reader must bear in mind the distinction between
a column used as a modifier or simply passed over. Thus
212 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS*
509 becomes 508, and 604, 603. Sometimes where we
use 50, we should really use 49. For instance, between
the 449th word on 1,76 and the bottom of the column
there are 49, not 50 words.
But think of this sentence : "The old temagant threat-
ens to hang and embowell me, if it is shown that I pre-
pared these plays for the stage for pay; and furnished
them to Philip Hence-low."
And the cipher goes on to say that I (Bacon) was sus-
pected of taking a share of the pence and silver paid at
the gate of the Curtain.
But how remarkable are the words thus brought out : —
"old? "termagant? ''threatens? ' "hang? "imbowell?
"shown? "prepared? "plays? "stage? "pay? "fur-
nished? "Philip? "Hence-lou'l"
The character of Falstaff first bore the name of "Sir
John Old-Castle/' who had been a martyr "of the reformed
faith; and the indignation of Queen Elizabeth compelled
the author to change the name of that character to Fal-
staff ; and, in the Prologue to Henry V., we find the poet
saying, — "For Old-Castle dyed a martyr, and this is not
the man.'" And we are told, in this cipher story, that if it
is proved that Bacon wrote the plays, he shall be "burned
alive."
Take 945—29=9 1 6+50=966— 1 67 =799+498= 1297.
And this carried through page 73 (406) and 2,72 (588)
leaves a remainder of 303, which carried up 1,72, brings
us to the I92d word, which is — "insulting."
The intervening number is 4+284 (1,74), =288, and the
288th word down the next column (1,75), is — "the"
We turn to 561. We deduct 50=511+29=540. Carry
this through 1,74 (284 words) and 2,73 (237 words) and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 213
there is left 19, and 19 carried tip the preceding column,
brings us to the i5ist word, which is "Christian"
The next word is 510. We add 50 and have 560 ; +284,
it is 844; carry it through 2,75 (508), and we have left
336, and the 336th word on 1,76, is — "religion"
Note that both "Christian" and "religion" come from
284 ( 1,74) :_ 561— 284 brings us to the word "Chris-
tian;" and 510+284 gives us the word "religion."
And so we have "burned alive" for "insulting the
Christian rcligio n . "
And these words are so arranged as to be used more
than once. For instance we showed that 4f284=288
gave us "the" Add TOO and we have 388. Carry this
through 2,73 (237 words) and we have 151 left, which
brings us to "Christian" Thus the word comes out
either up or down the column.
Take the alternate number of 510, — adding 509=^
1019; add 167 and we have 1186. Carry this through
page 73, (406 words) and we have 780 left; carry this
through 2, 72 (588 words) and we have 192 left, and the
I92d word on 1,72 is — "insulting"
Thus again both these words "insulting" and "Chris-
tian" come out up the column from 753, and down the col-
umn from 257.
"Religion" came from 510, going down the column.
Now we reverse it. Take 561, deduct 448, and we have
113 left; and this carried up the column (1,76), brings us
to the same 336th word — "religion"
If we. take the alternate number, 945, deduct 29 ; carry
it through p. 74, (532 words), and through 2,73 (237)
and up 1,73, it brings us to the 23d word — "the"
Let the sceptical consider this table :
214 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
945 — 29 — 167 up i, 72=" insulting"
510 — 5094-167 down i, 72=" insulting."
44-284 down i, 7$=" the."
945—29—532 up i ,73="f /it?."
561 — 504-29 up i ,7 $==." Christian."
44-2841100 down i, 73=" Christian."
5104-50+284 down if76=="r&Ugion.*!
561 — 448=113 up i, j6=" religion"
Here 4+284 brings us the word "the;" 510+284 gives
us the word "religion;" and, on the second column 4+284
produces ' ' Ch ristian "
Is there any one who, in the presence of these facts, and
all the others which I have given, will have the courage
to declare that this is a simple, natural, and ordinary
text; and that there are not here infinite proofs of arith-
metical co-ordination and adjustment, — in other words, of
a cipher?
Lack of space prevents me from "piling Ossa on Pe-
lion ;" but I cannot forb.ear a few further illustrations.
Let us drop the modifiers 192 and 253 and recur to
753 and 257, — the original numbers.
The reader, of course, remembers how these numbers
were obtained. We added 248 to 505 and it gave us
753 ; we deducted 248 from 505, and we had 257. These
were the numbers that gave us the long story about the
death of Marlowe, etc.
The number. 753 is modified by alternately adding and
subtracting 167. Thus we have 753^167=920; and
Take the latter number and carry it through page 74,
containing 532 words, and we have 54 left. Carry 54
THE CIPHER IX THE SHAKKSPEARE PLAYS. 215
up the preceding" column, 2,73, and it brings us to the
word "busily."
This word is rare. It occurs but one other time in all
the thousand folio pages of the so-called Shakespeare
Plays, — to-wit : in Titus Andronicus, IV. i.
And yet, rare as it is, the first pages of 2 Henry IV.
have been so arranged as to use it, and its co-relative
word "en-gaged" ("busily engaged/'} both from the bot-
tom of the column, and from the top of the column, in
obedience to the same root-numbers.
We have just seen 753—167=586—532=54; 237—
54=183+1=184, 2,73: "busily"
Now take 257 — deduct 50=207; add 2,75, (509
words):=7i6. Carry this again through p. 74, (532
words), and we have 184 left; and the i84th word down
the preceding column, is the same word "busily" which
we reached by going through 532 and up the column.
As this word "busily" was obtained by going backward,
let us go forward for the next word. Take 257 and add
50, and we have 307. Add to this 447, (being i, 75, or
i, 76 above the last word of ist section), and it gives us
754 ; deduct 29 and we have 725 ; add 50 and we have
775 ; carry this through 2, 76, (604 words), and we have
171 left, and this carried down the preceding column,
brings us to the 171 st word, which is — "engaged" And
so we have "busily engaged"
But we have just seen that "busily" was reached from
257 by going down as well as up the column; and now
we shall see that "engaged" is obtained by going up, as
well as down the column.
Take 753, add 29, and it makes 782, add TOO and we
have 882; carry this through 2, 76 (604), just used, and
216 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
we have 278 left; carry this up i, 76, from the end of
the ist section (448) and we again reach 171 : — "en-
gaged"
Contrast these figures:
up 753—167—586—532
=54; 237—54=183+
,fi=i84= "busily."
down 257+50=307+447=754
—29=725+50=775—
604=171, i, 76 "engaged"
Or, — in reversed order:
down 257 — 50=207+509=716;
—532=184 2, 73 "busily"
up 753+29=782+100=882 ;
882—604=278 ; 448
— 278=1 70fi= "engaged"
Here "busily" comes out, both going up the column,
and going down the column; each time carried through
532; the first page from the starting point, on i, 75. ,
And "engaged" (which is only found one time in this
play of 2 H. IV.), comes out, both going up the column
and going down the column ; each time carried through
2, 76, (604 words), one time going up the preceding col-
umn (1.76) and the other time going down the column,
(T, 76) ; and landing, by all these four countings, on pre-
cisely the same words!
And one of these words is found (I repeat), but one
other time in all the plays ; and the other is not found
again in this play!
Who is there can pretend that all this is accident?
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 217
And if you admit the arithmetical co-ordination of even
these four words, you must admit the presence of an
arithmetical cipher in the so-called Shakespeare Plays;
and as Shakspere was dead seven years at the time the
Folio of 1623 was printed, you must admit that the actor
of Stratford never wrote the plays which bear his name ;
and thus the entire Shakespearean myth falls to the
ground.
But let us go a little farther.
Take that word "busily," 184, 2, 73, and deduct 50
and we have 134, and the I34th word is "day!'
What do we infer? Is it "One day zvhile busily en-
gaged upon?" Upon what?
Let us see :
"Day'' was obtained by going backward. To get one
we must go forward ; and it comes from 257. To pro-
cure "engaged" we used these modifiers, — 257+50=307 f
447=754, minus 29=725. Now let us take these same
figures, but deduct 167 from 725 and we have 558 left;
carry this through i, 76, (498 words), and we have 60
left ; carry this down the next succeeding column and we
find the 6oth word is,— "one." And so we have "one
day."
But let us put the word "day" in proper arithmetical
form, and not simply get 134 (2,73), by deducting 50
from 1%^=-" busily"
753— 1 67=586f 50=636— 532=104 ; 237—104=1334
i— .134=" day."
Now then the next word should be "while" or its
equivalent, and should come from 257. Let us again
take the modifiers that gave us "one" and "engaged" to-
wit— 257+50=307,1-447=754, minus 29=725. Add 50
218 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
and we have 775. Now let us treat i, 75, (447), as we
have treated 193, 254, 509, etc., as a modifier; and take the
number of words above the last word on the column ; and
we have 446. We could not use 447 because we have
just added it ; and to add 447 and then deduct 447
amounts to nothing. Carry 775 through this 446 and
we have 329 left; carry this through 2, 74, (248 words),
and we have 81 left; carry this down the preceding col.
(1,74) and the 8ist word is: — "whilst" — the equivalent
of the word "while!'
As "day" came from 753 minus 167, the next word
must come from 753 plus 167=920. Add 50 and we
have 970; carry this through the 1st section of i, 76, (448
words), and we have 522 left; deduct 29 and we have
493; carry this up 2,76, (604 words), and it brings us
to the IT 2th word, which is "I."
We return to 257+50=307+447=754—29=725; de-
duct 167 and it leaves 558; carry this through i, 75, (447
words), and the remainder is in; and the mth word,
(1,76), is:— "was."
We recur to 753 minus 167=586; and this carried
through p. 74, fas I have shown), and taken up the pre-
ceding column, brings us to "busily"
The next word, "engaged" as I have shown, comes
from 257+50=307+447—29=725+50=775—604=171 ;
and 171 carried down i, 76 brings us to "engaged."
The next word comes from 753,+! 67=920. Carry
this through page 74, 532 words, and we have 388 left ;
(this taken up i, 75 would bring us to "Spur" of "Shakst-
spur;") but we deduct 29 from 388 and we have 359;
deduct 50 and we have 309; carry this up i, 75 (447) and
it brings us to the I39th word, which is, — "upon."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 219
Again we recur to 257+50=307+447=754—29=725,
deduct 167=558 again. Carry this through 446, (i, 75),
and we have 112 left; deduct 50 and we have 62 left; 62
on 2, 75 is — "the.''
The last time we used 753 we added 167; now we de-
duct it, and have 586 left; deduct 50 and we have 536;
deduct 167 and it leaves 369. Commence at the end of
the ist section 1,75, (193 words) carry this 369 up
through this, and we have 176 left ; take this up 2, 74 and
it brings us to the 73d word, which is, — "Contention"
The next word comes from 257. And again we use
the same modifiers, thus : 257+50=307+447=754 — 29
=725+100=825+ 167 =992. Carry this through 2, 75,
(508), =484; carry this through 2,74, (248), and we
have 236 left; and the 236th word, on 1,74, is — "be-
tween."
The word "Contention" came from 753 — 167=586.
The next word, "Yorke" comes from 753+167=920.
We add 167 and deduct 50 and we have 1037 left. Com-
mence at 2, 75 and deduct 508, (the number of words on
that column, exclusive of the clew-word), and we have
529 left; carry this through the ist section, 1,76 (448)
and we have 81 left; and this taken up the next col.,
(2, 76), brings us to the 524th word, which is, — "Yorke"
We return to 257 and use again the same modifiers :
257+50=307+447=754—29=725. Deduct 167, and we
have 558. Carry this through 1,75, (447 words), and
we have TTI left; and the nth word on 2, 74 is — "and"
Wre come again to 586. The last time we deducted 50 ;
this time we add 29, and wre have 615. We carry this
through page 74, (532 words), and we have 83 left;
add 50 and it is 133 ; carry 133 up the preceding column,
220
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
2> 73> (237) and it brings us to the iO5th word, which is
—"Lancaster"
And so we have: "one day, whilst I zvas busily en-
gaged upon the Contention between Yorke and Lancas-
ter."
- And every one of the 257 words, going down the col-
umns, to wit :— "one," "whilst," "was," "engaged," "the,"
"between," and "and," came not only from 257, but from
257+5°+447 — 29=725- And every word of the 753
words, to wit: — "day," "busily," "upon," "Contention,"
"Yorke" and "Lancaster" went up the columns, and were
derived from 753, alternately plus and minus 167!
Let us tabulate this sentence, so that the arithmetical
adjustments will be plainer to the reader. Instead of re-
peating 257+50=307+447=754—29=725,! shall simp-
ly give 725, with the subsequent modifications; and in-
stead of repeating 753+167=920, and 753 — 167=586, I
shall simply give 920 and 586.
down 725—167=558—498=60,
up 586+50=636—532=104 ; 237
-104=133+1=134,
down 725+50=775—446=1329—248
=81,
up 920+50=970—448=522—
29=493 ; 604—493=:! I i+i
down 725—167=558—447=1 1 1,
up 586—532=54; 237—54=183+1
=184, 2,73
down 725+50=775— 604=171,
up 920—29=891—532=359—50
2,76
"One"
2>73
"day"
i,74
"whilst"
2,76
1,76
"I"
"was"
"busily"
1,76 "engaged"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 221
=309; 447— 309=1384-1
=139, 1,75 "upon"
down 725 — 167=558 — 4461=1 12—
50=62, 2,75 "the"
up 586—50=536—167=369—193
=176; 248— 1 76=72. f I
=73, 2,74 "Contention"
down 725+50=775+50=825
+ 1 671=992 — 5081=484 — 248
=236, 1,74 "between"
up 920— 5o=87Qf 167=1037 ;
—508=529; —448=81; 604—
81=523,1-1=524, 2,76 "Yorke"
down 725 — 167=558 — 447=111, 2,74 "and"
up 586+50=636+29=665—532
-133; 237— 133— I04+I
=105, 2,73 "Lancaster."
Here again the only modifiers, up and down, are 50,
167 and 29 ; and yet these, with 727 and 753, as root num-
bers, bring out this statement.
Then take the alternatives, of the same numbers, not
immediately but leaping one. Thus the first down word
"one" is derived from 725 — 167=558; and "was" the al-
ternate, (leaping one,) is from 725 — 167=558; and so
is "the" and so is "and" And "whilst" and "engaged"
and "between" are from 7251+50=1775. And note how
586 and 920 alternate regularly. See how "Contention"
(586) goes backward to 2,74, and "Yorke" (920), goes
forward to 2,76: and "Lancaster" (586), goes backward
to 2,73 ! Backward, forward, backward !
To make this plainer, let us tabulate it in columns :
222
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
down
up
down
up
down
up
down
up
down
up
down
tip
down
up
558
586
586
586
920
•4-50
920
—29
920
+50
558
558
586
558
775
775
775
"One"
"day"
"whilst"
"I"
"was"
"busily"
"engaged"
"upon"
"the"
''contention"
"between"
"Yorke"
"and"
"Lancaster"
liere are more miracles of accident!
But surely all this cannot be so, "because the printers
could not follow copy, and set it up as directed!" Of
course they could not! Every "Shakespearean scholar/'
who has spent his life trying to prove that the play-actor
of Stratford was the greatest and most learned genius
that ever lived, will brush these figures aside with a wet
sponge and a hysterical laugh !
So many myths are fading away, under the electric
light of civilization, that this one, almost the last of the
breed, must be preserved at all hazards.
I showed, on page 144, ante, where the root-numbers
505 and 523 came from. Take the primal number, 836
(76 times 11=836). Carry it through 1,74, (284
words), and we have 552 left; deduct 29 and we have
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 223
523 ; deduct 18, for the 18 bracketed and hyphenated
words on that 1,74, and we have 505. (523 — 18=505).
Xow to prove that this coming together of "Contention
between Yorke and Lancaster" is not accidental, I shall
show that the same words come out from 523, as well as
505 ; the word "between" being obtained by going up
column i , 74, and not, as in the last instance, by going
down the column. \
Thus :
down 523— i67=356f5o=4o6+509
=9 1 5+29=944—448
=496, 2,75 "Contention"
up 523+253=776f29=8o5
+448=1253—956 (p. 75)=
297 — 248=49; and 284 — 49=
235+1=236 2,74 "between"
down 523+167=690 — 4481=242= 1,76 "Yorke"
up 523+253=4+447=45 1—284
=.-167; 248 — 167=81+1
=82+29=111 2,74 "and"
down 523 — 167=356 — 29=327 2,75 "Lancaster"
Observe that "Contention" occurs only twice in this
play of 2d. Henry IV. The 505 count brought out the
word "Contention" the 73d word on 2,74; and the 523
count brought out the other "Contention" the 496th word
on 2,75; 5°5 gave us "Yorke" the 524th word on 2,76;
and 523 brought us to "Yorke" the 242d word on 1,76;
505 produced "Lancaster" the io5th word on 2,73; and
523 gave us "Lancaster" the 327th word on 2,75. There
is only one "between" in the text; and so 505 brings it
out going down- the column, and 523 brings it out going
up the column!
224 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
And observe how, in this 523 example, 523 minus 167
produces "Contention;" while 523 plus 167 brings us to
"Yorke" and 523 minus 167 gives us "Lancaster"
( — .j. — ) . The central point of departure here is 448,
(1,76) "Contention" is 2,75, "Yorke" is 1,76, and "Lan-
caster" is 2,75. "Between" is 523+253+448; and "and"
is 523 — 523=4+447. "Between" is carried backward
from 2,75 to 1,74; and "and" is carried forward from
1,74 to 2,74.
These words, "Contention between Yorke and Lan-
caster" probably came out a dozen times by different
countings. For instance if we take 171, ("engaged")
1,76, and deduct 29, and we have 142, add 100 and we
have 242=** Yorke" Take 257+100=357; carry it
through 1,74, (284), and we have 73 left, and the 73d
word on the next column is — "Contention" Then take
the same 257+100=357, which gave us "Contention" and
add 447 to it, and we have 804; deduct 29 and we have
775. Carry this through 448, (ist. section 1,76), and
we have left 327 and the 327th word on 2,75 is "Lancas-
ter" We take 753 — 167=586, add 197 and we have
783; carry this through p. 74, (532 words), and we have
251 ; carry this through 2,73, (237 words), and we have
14 left, and this carried up the preceding column, brings
us to the 1 56th word, which is "betwixt" The counting
could not be made to reach "between" and so, on the
next page we have "betwixt"
Here we have "Contention" "Yorke" and "Lancaster"
obtained by going down the column. We have just seen
them coming out by the same cipher-numbers, going up
the columns. More accident !
And here I would remark, that the word "Contention"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
225
is a rare word in the Plays. It occurs but nine times in
all the 1623 Folio, to wit: In ist Part Henry IV. (the
one time already referred to) ; in the 2d Henry IV. (the
two times just given) ; in Henry V. once; in 3 Henry VI.
once, in Cymbeline once ; in Othello, once, and in Troilus
and Cressida twice : — six plays out of thirty-six. It is
not found at all in the Comedies or the Roman Plays. If
it was peppered all over the Plays, it might by accident
match with "Yorke" and "Lancaster." In Henry V.
"Contention," (V. 1.), is accompanied by "Yorke" (IV.
8) ; while "Lancaster" is thrown forward into the next
play, in the Folio, ist Henry VI. (2,5). In 3 Henry VI.
"Contention" is found in Act i, sc. 2, "Lancaster" in the
same act and scene; and "Yorke" in Act. i sc. i. In
"Cymbeline," "Othello" and "Troilus and Cressida," the
play is probably alluded to simply as "the Contention."
And to show how these words are woven together, take
184 "busily" 2,73; deduct 50 and we have 134, which
gave us "day;" then deduct 29 from 134 and we have 105,
and the io5th word on 2,73 is "Lancaster." And thus
we found that somebody was "busily engaged" upon some
play which had the word "Lancaster" as part of its name.
"The Second Part of Henry the Sixth" appeared first
in 1594, under the title "The First Part of the Contention
betwixt the two Famous Houses of Yorke and Lancas-
ter^ One scene is laid at St. Albans, Bacon's home. The
words, "St. Albans" appear about twenty-three times in
the so-called Shakespeare Plays, and Stratford-on-Avon
not once, although "Stony-Stratford," in Bucks, is re-
ferred to in Richard III.
The whole name of this play : "The first part of the
Contention betwixt the two Famous Houses of Yorke and
15
226 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
Lancaster," occurs in the first scene of ist Henry IV., and
the last scene of the preceding play, Richard II. The ci-
pher runs from one play into the other; and thus makes
detection more difficult. We have seen the cipher we have
worked out, in this book, in the same way carried through
the end of ist Henry IV., and the beginning of 2d Henry
IV. Thus "Two" is in the ist scene of i. H. IV.;
"Famous" in the last scene of Richard II. ; "houses"
(disguised in "leaping-houses,") in scene 2 of I H. IV.
"Contention'' is, from ist sc. I H. IV.; "Yorke" is in the
last scene of R. II. ; "betwixt" is in I H. IV. I. I. and
"Lancaster" from R. II. 5.5.
Let us return to that 18/j.th word "busily" on 2,73.
Carry the count 167 words further up that column, which
is done by deducting 167 from 184 and we have 17, and
the 1 7th word is "Worcester" Is there something here
about the "Bishop of Worcester ?" Let us see :
This is equivalent to :
753—532=221 ; 237— 22i=i6f I
=17, 2,73 'Worcester"
Let us now take 753 and deduct 167 and we have 586,
which gave us "busily" Add 29 to 586 and it gives us
615. Carry 615 through 1,76 (498 words), and we have
117 left. Take this up from the end of the ist section
1,76, (448), and it brings us to the 332d word, which is
—"Bishop."
And so we have:
5864-29=615— 498=117; 448— 117
=33 i.f 1=332 1,76 "Bishop"
920— 532=388— 167=221 ; 237—221
=16+1=17 2,73 "Worcester"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 227
Or, if it be objected that this word, — "Worcester"-
really comes from 753: — thus 753.1-167=920 and 920 —
167=753; and 753—532 (P- 74)> leaves 221; and 221
taken up 2,73 brings us to the i7th word: — "Worcester;"
then let us take 753+167=920, and deduct 50, which
gives us 8/0, and deduct 29 and we have 841 ; and this
carried through p. 74 (532 words), leaves 309, and this
carried through 2,73 (237 words), leaves 72 ; and 72 car-
ried up the preceding column (1,73), brings us to the
98th word "Worcester." This is the third "Worcester;"
and every one of these "Worcesters" matches with that
word "Bishop." The first "Worcester" is the 255th word
on 2,75, and this is reached thus :
753—498 (1,76) =255 ; 509—255=254+1
=255= "Worcester"
And "Bishop" is also the 753d word, minus 167, which
gives us 586. Thus 586 plus 29 makes 615 ; and 615 car-
ried through 1,76 (498 words), leaves 117; and 117 taken
up the column brings us to "BisJiop."
Could "'Bishop'' be the 753d word, and the three "Wor-
cesters" also be, each of them, the 753d word, without
the most careful manipulation of the text? And then, as
we have shown, (page 182 ante), could each of these same
words — "Bishop" and "Worcester" — come out, by acci-
dent, as the 257th word ; 257 being 505 — 248 ; and 753
being 505+248? Accident never produced such results
since the earth began to roll around in its orbit.
We found that while 586 (753 — 167=586), gave us,
up the column, "busily" 257+5Of447 — 29 gave us 725
-1-50=775, (which has just brought out the one-half of a
228 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
long sentence) ; and 775 carried through 2,76 (604 words)
furnished a remainder of 171=" engaged."
Now, let us add that magical modifier, 167 to 171, and
we have 338; and the 338th word on that column is
"sincere;'' while 167 deducted from 171 leaves 4, which
is "bosoms," while 4+50=54, and the 54th word is
"decay." These words are part of a high eulogism of
Sir John Whitgift, originally the Bishop of Worcester,
a sincere and holy man , who had remained true in the
midst of the decay of religion.
We recur again to that word "busily;" it is the i84th
word on 2,73. Let us add the modifier 29 to 184, and
we have 213; and the 21 3th word, on the same column,
is the word "meeting."
This came out of 753, thus : 753 minus 167=586 — 29
=557—532=25; 237—25=212+1=213 ="meeting."
Now let us go one column forward from 1.75, just as
we went to one column behind 1,75, to get "meeting;" and
we add 167 to 753=920 ; thus 920 — 29, (we just deducted
29 from 586), and we have 891 ; carry this through 2.75
(508 words), and we have 383 left; and 383 carried up
the next column, from the end of the ist section (488),
brings us to the 66th word, which is "chauee."
"Meeting by chance." Where is the "by?'' We recur
to the same 725, which we have used for some time past.
Add 50 and we have 775 ; deduct 167, and we have 608
left. Carry this through the same 448 and we have 160
left, and the i6oth word on 1.75 is" by.'"
Let us put this together :
«P 753—167=586—29=557 ;
557—532=25; 237—25=
212+1=213 2,73 "meeting"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
229
down 725+50=775 — 167=608 —
448=160
up 753+167=920—29=891 ;
891—508=383; 448—383
=65+1=66
down 725+50=775—406=369—
284=85—50=35
UP 753—167=586+29=615-
498=117; 448—117=331+
'by"
"chance'
2,74
1,76 "Bishop"
down 725+50=775—167=608 —
448=160 — 50=1=1 10+29
. =J39
L1P 7 5 3+ 1 67=920 — 29=891—
50=841—532=309—237
=72; 169—72=97+1
=98
1,76
"of
1,73 "Worcester"
And here come in the words, already given, "one day
whilst I was busily engaged Upon the Contention between
Yorkc and Lancaster."
Take that same 725 add 100=1825 ; carry it through
page 74 (532 words), and we have 293 left; carry this
through 2, 73 (237 words), and we have 56 left, and the
56th word on i, 73 is "as."
The next word comes from 586. Carry it through p.
74 (532) an(l we have 54 left. This is the same 54 which
taken up 2, 73 gave us "busily." Carried up i, 74 it gives
us: "I."
We return to 725 ; deduct 167 and we have 558 — deduct
50 and we have 508 ; deduct 29 and we have 479 ; carry
this through i, 75 (447) and we have 32, and the
word (2, 74) is "walked."
230 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We come now to 920 again ; Q2Of 100=1020+167=1187
—29=1158; carry this through 2, 75 (508), and we have
650 left. Take this through page 73 (406 words) we have
244 left; carry this up 2, 72 (588), and it brings us to the
345th word : "along"
We return to 725, but instead of deducting 167, we
add the alternate 50; and we have 775; carry this also
through page 74 (532) and we have 243 left; take this
through 2,73 (23/)> anc^ we nave 6 left, and the 6th word
(1,73) is: «<m.»
We turn again to 586; deduct 1 67=41 9f 29=448;
carry this up 2.75 (509) and we reach the 62d word:
"rtf*
We recur to 725 and we deduct 167, as we did to get
"walked" and again we have 558; add 100 and we have
658; take this through I, 75 as a modifier (446) and we
have 212, and the 21 2th word is "S frond"
The "Strond" was the river front on the Thames, and
the great pleasure walk and meeting place of that day.
Let us tabulate this :
down 725+50 f5o=82 5— 532= "as"
up 586—532=54= "I"
down 725—167=558—50=508—
29=479 — 447=32 "walked"
up 920+100=1020+167+50
+50=1187 — 29=1158 "along"
down 725+50=775—532=243—
237=6 "on"
up 586— 167=4^29 "the"
down 725— 167=558+50+50=658
—446=212 "Strond."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 231
Observe these words (naturally connected) : "walked"
and "Strond" Each comes from 725. In each 167 is
deducted from 725 and we have 558. But the divergence
comes here — to get "walked" we subtract 50 from 558,
and deduct 29. To get "Strond" we add 50 to 558=608,
and then add another 50, instead of deducting 29 ; and 29,
we have seen, is the alternative of 50.
And then we have:
586 — 29=557 — 447=110; and no carried up 1,75 brings
us to the 338th word : "stopping"
Then take 725—167=1558+100=658—509=149; and
the I49th word,, 2, 75, is: "to"
The last up-word was 753 — 167=586, carried through
1, 75 and again up i, 75. Now we have 753+167=920
Carry this through i, 76, instead of i, 75, and up the pre-
ceding column and we reach the 38th word on 2, 75, to-
wit : "speak"
We return to 725 and add 50=775+50=825 — 167
=658 — 29=629; 629 — 447=182, and the i82d word on
2, 74 is : "with"
We return to 586; add 100 and we have 686; deduct
167 and we have 519; carry this through ist section 1,76
(448), and we have 71 left; carry this up 2, 76 (604),
and we reach the 534th word (2, 76), which is "him"
And so we have "stopping to speak with him"
And then we have : "His Lordship commenced to tell
me"
Thus :
down 725 — 447=278 2,75 "His"
up 586—50=536+29=565—
448=117; 604 (2,76)-
117=488 2,76 "Lordship"
232 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
down 725 — 447=278 — 248=30 1,74 ''commenced"
up 920 — 1 00=820 — 448=372 ;
509— 372=I37+I=I38 2,75 "to"
down 725 — 167=558+100=658—
532=126 i,75 "tel1"
up 5 86+ 1 00=686 — 1 67=5 1 9—
509=10; 447—10=437+1
=438 i,75 ****"
To tell him all about the death of More-low, as he had
derived it from the Knight-Marshal of the Court, the
Earl of Shrewsbury :
920 — 448^=472; 498 — 472=26+1
=27 1,76 "Earl"
586+29=61 5— 248=367— 248=
i 1195284 — 119=165+1=166 1,74 "Shrewsbury"
Here the word "commenced" (30, i, 74),, is used going
down the column. A little while ago (p. 156 ante) it was
obtained going up the column (753+197=950).
And the same number, 117, (586 — 5o=536f 29=565—
448=1 1 7), which, going up 1,76, gave us "Bishop" going
up the next column gives us "Lordship." A bishop is
addressed as "your Lordship." And 117 taken up 2, 75,
from 508, brings us to the I92d word "keepers" and this
describes "the keepers" of the "deer close" with whom
Shakspere and his followers had their fight ; but it also
refers to the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, and his
"order" (483, 2, 75), issued for the arrest of Shakspere.
And here we have the word "deer" 753+197=95° — 406
=444; 588— 444=144 -"-1=145* 2, 72="deere."
The cipher story unrolls in such immense proportions
that I find myself forced to abbreviate. But I cannot
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
233
refrain, before I finish this chapter, from giving one or
two remarkable fragments. Here is one :
clown 257+509=766 — 100=666 —
50=616—532=84 2,73
up 753+508=1261 — 447=814
—532=282—248=34; 284
—34=250+1=251 1,74
clown 257+509=766 — 100=666 —
100=566—509=57+29=86 i ,75
up 753+508=1261—448=813
—604=209; 577—209=368
+1=369
down 257+509=766+100=866—
509=357 i,76
up 753+508=1261— 447=814
—197=617—509=108; 447
-108=339+1=340 1,75
down 257+100=357+532=889—
508=381 2,75
up 753+508=1261—447=814
—532=282; 284 — 282=2+
i=3 i,74
down 257+509=766 — 604=162+
29=191 1,77
up 753+508=1261—448=813
— 604=209+218=427; 577
—427=150+1=151 1,77
down 257+509=766—532=234 i ,75
up 753+508=1261—447=814
—532=282—237=45; 169
—45=124+1=125
"the"
"old"
jade'
1,77 "listening"
1,76 "with"
"greedy"
'impatient"
"ears"
"my"
"hateful"
"kinsman's"
234 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
down 257— ioo=±=i 57+509=666—
197=469—447=22 2,75 "strange"
up 753+508=1261+167=1428
—448=980—29=95 1—532
=419; 419—406=13; 589
—13=577 2,72 "tale"
The "hateful kinsman" was Bacon's cousin, Robert
Cecil, always his malignant enemy; who held him down
as long as he lived. He is telling the Queen ("the old
jade") that Bacon is the real author of the Shakespeare
Plays, and that the purpose is to create rebellion against
her, and bring in the Scottish king.
Observe here that all the significant up-moving words —
"old" "listening" "greedy" "ears" "my" "kinsman's"
"tale" — come from that root number 753, (which has al-
ready told such a long story) +508 (2, 75), the number
of words above the clew word "reign;" while the alter-
nate number 257 is added to or subtracted from the same
2, 75, counting in the clew-word, and producing "the"
"jade" "with," "impatient," "to," "hateful" and
"strange"
And here is a reference to his "hateful kinsman :"
up 753—447=306+50=356—
248=108+29=1137; 284—
I37=i47-M=i48 i,74 ' "my"
down 257+50=307+192=1499+197
=696—532=164 2,73 "cousin"
up 753+167=920—29=891—
448=443; 509—443=66+
1=67 2,75 "says"
down 257+50=307— 254=53 1,75 "ill"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 235
The e in Cecil had the sound of a. Note how "cousin'
comes from 307.4-192 ; and "ill" from 307 — 254. Here the
point of departure is the I93d word on i, 75; there are
192 words above it and 254 below it.
Surely here are miracles heaped on miracles, if all this
is accidental. «
And here is another 1261 :
1261+50=1311 minus 167=1144—577 (i, 77) =567,
and 567 carried up the next column, 2, 77, brings us to
the 45th word "burnt."
Now if we take the same numbers that gave us the
word "strange," the 22d word (2, 75), and add 50 to 22,
we have 72, and the 72d word, on 2, 75, is "alive." And
so we have "burnt alive."
And this is the doom the Queen declares against Bacon
if it proves that Cecil's strange tale is true. And in con-
nection with this we have the words, which we have al-
ready given : "for insulting the Christian religion."
And here we have another fragment. Speaking of
Marlow, Bacon says :
up 753—447=306; 448—306=
142+1=143 1,76 "the"
down 257 — 167=90 2,74 "news"
up 753+167=920—448=472—
50=422+29=451 ; 604—451
=153+1=154 2,76 "of"
down 257+167=424+29=453 2,75 "the"
up 753—167=586—447=139 ;
248 — 139=109+1=110 2,74 "death"
down 257+167=424—50=374 2,76 "of"
up 753+167=920+50=970—
447=523—248=275 ; 284—
286 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
275=9+1=10 1,74 "the"
down 257+50=307+197=504—
447=57 1,75 "young'
up 753— 167=586— 447=! 39 ;
509—139=370+1=371 2,75 "wretch"
down 257 — 218=39+167=206—
59=225+1=226 2,75 "More"
up 753+167=920— 167=753—
446=1307—248=59; 284—
59 — 225+1=226 1,74 "low"
Here we have again the name "More-low," but instead
of going up T . 75 to get "more" we go down 2, 75 ; and
instead of going down i, 74 to get "loiv" we go up I, 74.
All this required most careful pre-arrangement.
The news of the death of Marlowe was a "joyful quit-
tance" to Bacon :
257—50=207—197=10 1,75 "joyful"
753—50=703—50=653+167=
820—447=373; 509—373
=136+1=137 2,75 "quittance"
257—50=207+197=404—50=
354 i,75 "to"
753—50=703+167=870—447=
4235447—423=24+1=25 1,75 "me"
Bacon was in a state of continual fright and perturba-
tion of mind, lest the drunken Marlow should betray his
secret :
down 257+218=475+167=642—
508=:! 34 2,75 "state'
up 753+508=1261—532=729
—498=231; 604—231=373
+1=374 2,76 "of"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 237
down 257 — 218=39 J.»74 "continual''
up 753— 100=653— 447=2o6 ;
447 — 206=241+1—242 1,75 "fright"
down 257+218=475+50=525—
509=16 1,76 "and"
up 753+508=1261+50=131 1.
447=864 — 604=260; 577 —
260=317+1=318 1,77 "perturbation"
down 257 — 218=39+50=89+167
=256+29=285 2,75 "of"
"P 753— 100=653+447=1 100
+50=1 1 50—604=546 — 448
—98; 448—98=350+1=
351 1,76 "mind"
And incidentally, let us touch upon another very strik-
ing example of the Cipher, and to it I would especially
call the attention of the incredulous.
We saw that 753 — 50=703 ; and that this carried
through 1,75 (447) left 256, and that this carried again
up 1,75, brought us to 192, the word "More" of "More-
low."
Now let us deduct 192, the modifier on 1,75, from 192;
and as 256 went up the column we deduct 192 by adding
it to 192 ; then we have 192+192=384, — and this gives us
the word "see." Deduct 100 from 384 and we have 284,
and the 284th word is "drew."
As we used 192 to get "drew" we must use its co-rela-
tive (253), to get the next word: 253+257=510 — 167
=343 ; and the 343d word is — "their."
The sentence is, — "they drew their weapons."
"Their" came from 257+253=510. "They" must come
from 257 — 253=4. And here we have it : — 4+167=
1 7 [+448=6 19. Deduct 100 and we have 519. Carry this
238 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
backward through 2, 74 (248 words), and we have 271
left; and the 27ist word on i, 74 is "they."
"Drew their — what?
"Drew" came from 753 — 192=561+50=611 — 447=
164; 447 — 164=283+1=284,=^ word "drew."
This being from 753 minus 192, the next word must be
from 753+192=945. Deduct 167 and we have 778.
Carry this to the 2d col. of p. 76, 604 words, and deduct
604, and we have 174 left, deduct 29 and we have 145
left: carry this up from the 448th word i, 76, (end 1st
section) and it brings us to the 3O4th word, which is: —
"weapons" And so we have "drew their weapons."
The next word comes from 257 — 253=4 ; let us add to
this 447 and we have 451, and the 45ist word, on the
next column, is "and"
Now add 50 to 284 ("drew"), and we have 334, and
the 334th word on the same column is the word "fought "
We again take 257+253=510 — 100=410; carry this
through 2, 74, (248) and we have 162 left, and the :62d
word on the preceding column (i, 74) is: — "a"
Tt is now the turn of 753 plus 192, and we have again
945; add 167 and it makes 1112 (the last time we de-
ducted 167 to get "weapons") ; deduct 100 (we added
50 to get "drew"), and we have 1012. Carry this through
p. 74 (532), and we have 480 left; carry this through
p. 73 (406), and we have 74 left; and this taken up
2, 72 (588), brings us to the 5i5th word "long."
We turn to 4 (257 — 2537=4) ; 4+167=171+448=619;
carry this through p. 74 (532), and we have a remainder
of 87; and this carried to the next column backward
(2, 73) is "and."
We recur to 561; add 447 and we have 1008; deduct
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 239
100 and we have 908 ; deduct 29 and we have 879 ; carry
this through 2, 75 (509), and the remainder is 370. Take
this through 2, 74 (248), and we have 122 left; carry this
up the preceding column (i, 74), and it brings us to the
1 63d word, which is : — "bloody."
The number 510 comes next; add 248 and we have
758 — deduct 29 and we have 729. Carry this through
page 74 (532) and we have 197 left; and the I97th word
(2, 73) is:— "fight."
The next number, going up the column, is 945 (7534-
192). We deduct 50 and have 895 left. We carry this
through 2, 76 (604), just as we did to get the word
"weapons;" and we have 291 left; and the 29ist word up
column i, 76 (the same column on which we found
"weapons"), is : — '''more"
We take 510 next; add 50=560 — 29=531+167=698,
— 447=251, and the 25ist word on 2,75 is "then" or
"than."
We recur to 561 ; add 447=1008 (the same number
which gave us "bloody") ; deduct 604 (2, 76), and we
have 404, and this carried up i, 76 brings us to the 95th
word "an."
We recur to 4; add 509=513+509=1022 — 100=922.
Carry this through page 73 (406 words), leaves 516 and
the 5i6th word down the next column (2,, 72), is
"hour."
And so we have : — "they drew their weapons and fought
a long and bloody fight more than an hour." And "long"
is the 5 1 5th word on 2,72, and "hour" is the 5i6th word
on the same, the two words coming together in this sen-
tence, in FalstafF s lying declaration about having killed
Hotspur : —
240 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
"But we rose at an instant and fought a long hour by
Shrewsbury clock !"
And so from page 75, comes 753+192+ 167, and sweep-
ing over pages 74 and 73, it goes up 2, 72, and brings
us to the word "long."
And the co-relative of 192, 253, deducted from 257
leaves 4; and this with 509 added, =513+509, sweeping
over page 73, descends on that word "hour," which suc-
ceeds the word "long." And these disjoined parts of a
cipher sentence — "fought a long hour," descend into a
sentence of the text, which gives us : — "fought a long
hour!"
Surely, if this is accident, it is the most marvelous and
miraculous accident the world has ever seen.
See how 284 is "drew;" and 50 words below is 334,
which is "fought;" and 384 is "see" — which is part of a
sentence "till they could no longer see." And these
words are derived from 753 minus 1921=561 ; and if we
take 753 plus 192 we have 945 ; and deduct 167 and carry
the remainder through 2, 76, and this carried backward
through i, 76 gives us "zvcapons."
We have seen that 447 ( i , 75 ) plays an important part
in the cipher. "Drew" came from 561+50=611, minus
447; "fought" comes from 561 less 447; and "and" is
from 4 plus 447. Now instead of deducting 447 let us
add it. Then 561+447=1008; (the same number gave
us "bloody" and "an") ; and this carried through pages
74 and 73, leaves 70 (1008 — 532=476 — 406=70), and
70 carried up the next preceding column brings us to the
5 1 9th word (2, 72), which is "clock."
We saw that in the sentence in the text, where Falstaff
is doing his tremendous falsifying, he says : — "We rose
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 24l
both at an instant, and fought a long hour by Shrewsbury
clock."
And here we have "clock!"
"Clock'' is the 5i9th word on 2, 72 ; obtained by adding
447 to 561=1008. Now let us take the alternate of 561,
945, add 100 to it and we have 1045 J deduct 2, 74 (248)
and we have 797; carry it through 2, 75 (509) and we
have 288; and this carried up i, 75 brings us to the i6oth
word "by" The intervening word "the" comes from
510; add 100 and we have 610; carry this through 2, 75
(509), and we have 101 ; and this carried down the pre-
ceding column (1,75), brings us to the word "the." And
so we have : "by the clock"
Let us tabulate this :
down 4 f 167+448=6 19 — 100= (i, 74) "they"
519— 248-^27 1,
up 561+50=61 1— 447=164 ;
447— 164— =283+1=284, (i, 75) "drew"
down 5 10— 167=343, (i, 75) "their"
up 945—167=778—604=174
—29=145; 448 --145=303
+1=304, (i, 76) "weapons"
down 4+447=45 1, (2, 75) "and"
up 561—447=114; 447—114=
333+1— 334, ( 1 1 75 ) "fought"
down 510 — 100=410 — 248=162, (i,74) "ti'
up 945+167=:! 1 12—532=580
—100=480 — 406=74; 588
—74=514+1=515, (2, 72) "long"
down 4+167=171+448=619 —
532—87, (2, 73) "and"
16
242 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
up 56 i.f 447= 1 008 — 100=908
—29=879—509=370
—248=122; 284 — 122=1162
+1=163, (i, 74) ''bloody"
down 5104-248—758 — 29=729—
532=197, (2, 73) "fight"
And then he proceeds to describe the fight in detail. It
continued :
up 945— 50=895— 604=1291 ;
448—291=1574-1=158, (i, 76) "more"
down 5104-50=560—29=531+
167=698—447=251, (2, 75) "than"
up 561+447=1008—604=404;
498— 404=94f 1=95, (i, 76) "an"
down 4+509=513+509=1022—
100=922— 406=516, (2, 72) "hour"
up 945+100=1045—248=797
-509=288:447—288=
159+1=160, (i, 75) "V
down, 5 iof 100=610— 509=101, (i, 75) "the"
up 561+447=1008—532=476
—406=70; 588—70=518+1
1=1519, (2, 72) "clock"
And then we are told that Marlow "drooping and faint
from loss of blood was struck in the eye, by the point of
the sword, and did drop breathless and bleeding to the
earth"
I have it all worked out, but have not room for it here.
836.
But I have stated that the primal root-number, of all
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
243
the cipher story, growing- out of the ist and 2cl parts
of King Henry IV., commencing on Col. I of page 74,
was 836; originating from the multiplication of page 76
(the last page on which we find "Scena Secunda" of the
Folio) by n, the number of words in brackets on i, 74
(counting the word "post-horse" as two words), thus
76x11=836. And it may be objected that I have not yet
shown that any cipher story comes out of that number,
836. So to satisfy such criticism, in advance, I append
the following fragment, before closing this chapter:
down 836—50=786+29=815
-193=622—577=45,
up 836+50=886—448=438;
509—438=71+1=72,
down 836+448=1284 — 193=
1091 — 603=488,
up 836—50=786—448=338 ;
509— 338=171+1=172,
down 836 — 448=388,
up 836+50=886—604=^282 ;
604—282=322+1=323
down 836+448=1284+193=
1477—29=1448—509=
939—498=441,
up 836—50=786+29=815
—509=306; 447—306=
141+1=142,
down 836+448=1284+100=
1 384 — 1 97= 1 1 87 — 406
=781—589=192,
up 836—50=786—448=338 ;
(2,77)
(V5)
(2,75)
(2,75)
'burnt"
"alive"
'the"
'fire"
"of"
(2,76)
(2,76) "Smithfield"
(i,75) "for"
(1,72) "insulting"
244 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
577— 338=239+1=240
-167=73—50=23, (1,77) "the"
down 836 — 448=388 — 237=151 (1,73) "Christian"
up 836+29=865—193=672
—509=163; 498—163=
335+1=336, (1,76) "religion"
Here we have proof, not only that the primal root-
number is 836; but that the text is so arranged as to
bring out the words "insulting the Christian religion" by
this primal root-number, 836, as well as by the deriva-
tions from 836, to-wit : 753 plus and minus 192, and
257 plus and minus 253. And the word "Christian" came
from 753—192 up 1,73, and from 257~ 253=4 down 1,73 ;
and "religion" came from 753 — 192=561 up I, 76, and
from 257+253=510 down the column. And here we find
the word "Christian" derived from 836 down the column,
and "religion" from 836 up the column.
Note too, how, in the example just given, 836 minus
448, carried down the preceding column (2, 75) gives us
"fire" and 836 plus 448, carried down the succeeding
column gives us "Smithfield '' ("fire of Sniithneld"). And
observe how 836 plus 50, carried through 448, and up
2, 75, brings us to the word "alive;" while 836 minus 50
gives us the word "burnt" And note how 836 plus 448
brings us to the word "insulting" and 836 minus 448
gives us the word "religion" "Smithfield," it is well
known, was the place in London where heretics were
burned alive.
I showed in opening the discussion of the cipher in
the Plays (p. 142 ante) that 836 — 5 3 2=304=" fo und
(i, 75); and 836— 447=389=^0?^ (2, 75) ; and this
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 245
"found-out" is part of a sentence, that "if the old jade
found me out I should be burned alive in the fire of
Smith-field, for insulting the Christian religion."
A very sufficient reason for postponing the acknowl-
edgment of the authorship of the Plays.
246 THE CIPHER IN THE SKAKESPEARE PLAYS.
CHAPTER XXVII.
THE STORY OF SHAKSPERE.
The cipher narrative, which I have worked out in the
foregoing pages, was derived from 505 minus 248=257 ;
and 505 plus 248=753 — the figures 248 being the num-
ber of words on column 2 of page 74.
The next subdivision following, after 248, is 193, which
is found in the upper half of column one of page 75 (see
fac-simile p. 75), above the Stage direction: "Enter Mor-
ton." It has entered into the work already given; and
especially the modifier, 192, being the number of words
above the last word of that first subdivision; and its co-
relative, 253, the number of words below the first word
of the lower subdivision of I, 75.
Now, passing away from plus and minus 248, let us
try plus and minus 193.
Thus: 505 plus 193=698;. and 505 minus 193=312.
And these numbers :
312 and 698,
in their turn, tell a long piece of the cipher story; and
are used alternately up and down the columns; that is
to say, not only does 698 go up the columns when 312
goes down; but 312 goes up the columns when 698 goes
down!
We saw that 50 alternated with 167 and 29 with 50.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 247
If we add 50 to 312 we have 362; and if we carry
this up i, 75 (447), it brings us to the 86th word, "jade."
Now take the alternate number 698; carry it through
i, 75 (447), and we have 251 left, and the 2515! word on
i, 74, is "old " so this gives us "old jade" (Queen Eliza-
beth).
Again carry 362 through 2, 74 (248), and we have 114
left; deduct 29 and we have 85 ; take this us i, 74, and it
brings us to the 2OOth word — "noise." But we saw that
251 (i, 74) was "old;" deduct "50" and we have 201,
which is "abroad." And so we have "old jade" and
"noise abroad"
But let us reverse this; and instead of sending 698
down the column and 362 up ; send 362 down and 698 up.
Then we have 505 — 193=312, add 50 and we have 362,
and the 362d word, on i, 75, is "sonne"
Now let us take 698 and commence at the top of 2, 74,
and carry it through that column (248) and we have 450
left; take this through i, 75 (447), and we have 3 left;
carry this up 2,75, counting in the clew-word, and it
brings us to the 5O7th word (2, 75), which is "first-
borne." Join this to "son" and we have "first-borne
sonne."
Who was "the first-borne sonne f"
Take 362 and again commence to count from the top
of 2, 74, and carry it through that column (248 words),
and we have 114 left; and the H4th word on the next
column (i, 75) is "spurre"
This is obtained by going down the column. The al-
ternate number is 698. It goes up the column. Let us
deduct the modifier 167 and we have 531 left. We began
at the beginning of ' bcena secnnda" to get "Spurre."
248 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
Now let us begin at the beginning of the next scene,
"Scena Tertia," which starts with the 449th word, I, 76.
Between 449 and the bottom of the column (498 words)
there are 49 words. Deduct 49 from 531, and we have
482 left. "Spurre" moved forward ; the next word moves
backward. Carry 482 up the preceding column, 2, 75, and
it brings us to the 28th word,, 2, 75, which is "shak'st"
And so we have "Shak'st-Spurre." And he was the
"first bom' son" of John Shakspere. There were two
daughters before him, "Jone" and "Margaret," but he
was the first-born son.
And is it not remarkable that we find "shak'st" and
"Spurre" coming alternately up and down the columns,
from 505 plus 193 and 505 minus 193, and moving al-
ternately forward and backward from the beginning of
two different scenes?
And if we take that number, 482, up 2, 76, instead of
2, 75 (which gave us "Shak'st"), it brings us to the I23d
word — "vile."
And if we take 362 and add 456, already used else-
where (the number of words above the last word of the
first section of 2, 76) we have 818; carry this through
i, 75 (447), and the remainder is 371 and the 37ist word
on 2, 75, is "IVY etch!3 And so we have "vile wretch."
And if we deduct 50 from 698 we have 648; carry it
through 2, 75 (509), and the remainder is 139; and 139
carried up 2, 75, brings us to that same word "wretch."
Thus 698—50=648—509=139; 509—139=3704-1=371
="wretch."
Everywhere this text reveals the same marvellous
arithmetical adjustments. Here we have the same num-
ber, 482, carried up two contiguous columns, 2, 75, and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 249
2, 76, producing "shak'st" and "vile;" and the word
"wretch" coming from 362 down the column ; and from
698 up the column.
But who is this "vile wretch," "Shak'st" "Spurre" the
"first-borne" "son" of?
Now take 698 and add 248 (to get the word "first-born"
we deducted 248) and we have 946. Carry this through
447 and we have 499 left; carry through 2, 74 (248), and
we have 251 left (which down the column gave us "old),
and carry this up I, 74, and it brings us to the 34th
word "of."
Take 362, add 50=412+284=696; carry this through
i, 76 (448), and we have 248 left; and the 248th word
(2, 76) is "Master."
Take 698 — 167=531+29=560 — 447=113; carry this
up 2, 74, and it brings us to the I36th word — "John."
Take again 312; carry it through 284 and we have 28
left, and the 28th word (2, 76) is "Shak'st"
Take 698+167 (the last was minus 167) =865 — 28=
836; — 448=388, and this taken up i, 75, gives us (i, 75)
the 6oth word "Spurre."
Take 698 and deduct 100 and we have 598; carry this
through i, 75 (447), and we have 151 left; carry this up
i, 76, and it brings us to the 297th word — "half."
Take 312 again, add 50=362— 29=333+50=383=
Recur to 698 ; deduct 193 and we have 505 — 50=455 ;
carry this up 2, 75, and it brings us to the 55th word—
"and;'
Take 312 again +50=362+50=4 12+254 (i, 75)^=666.
Carry this through i, 74, and 2, 73, and we have 145 left;
and the H5th word, on i, 73, is alive."
250 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We saw that 362 — 248—1 i$="Spurre." Now deduct
29 from 114, and we have 85, and the 85th word I, 75, is
"poor" (The next word, 86, is "jade" — see how these
columns are packed thick with cipher words!)
We saw that 167 deducted from 698 left 531, and 531
less 49 gave us 482, which gave us "Shak'st" and "vile."
We shall see that 167 is added to 698 and gives us 865.
Now let us take 531 and carry it through I, 75 (447), and
we have a remainder of 84 ; and this carried up the next
column (2, 75) brings us to the word "sickly;" (531—
447=84; 509—84=425+1=426,, 2, 7$=" sickly")
The next word comes from 312. Take the modifier 20,
;ind deduct it from 312 and we have 283, and the 2831!
word, I, 75, is "woe-be gone;" 3i2+$o="sonne;" 312 — 29
We return to 698; add 100 and we have 798, carry
this through page 74 (532 words), and we have 266 left:
take this, still backward, through 2, 73 (237 words), and
we have 29 left; carry this up I, 73, and it brings us to
the I4ist word, "creature."
And so we have "poor, sickly, woe-be-gone creature"
and "Shak'st-spurre" was his "first-borne sonne."
Is it not extraordinary, if accident alone brought to-
gether a series of words that cohere as well as "poor,
sickly woe-begone creature," not scattered over all crea-
tion, but moving alternately up and down the columns,
i, 74, i, 75, and 2, 75?
We take again 362, which gave us "sonne" and add to
it page 74 (532 words), and we have 894; deduct 29
and we have 865; carry this through 2, 75 (508 words),
and we have 357 left, and this carried forward to i., 77>
we find the 357th word is "very."
THD CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 251
We take 698 again and add 193 (i, 75) and we have
891 — deduct 29 and we have 862. Carry this through
page 73 (406) and we have 456 left ; and this taken up
2, 72, from 588, brings us to the I33d word — "much!'
We return to 362 and again add 532, which gave us
"very" but instead of going forward with 894, to 2, 75,
we go backward to 2, 73, and carry it through page 73
(406 words), and we have 488 left, and the 488th word
on 2, 72, is "given."
We recur to 698-1-193=891, which gave us "much" but
we add 167 instead of 29, and we have 1058; we go
again to 2, 75, deduct 509 and we have 549 ; add 29, and
carry this through the 1st section, i, 76 (448), and we
have 130 left, and the 1301!! word, 2, 76, is "to"
Again we take 362, add 447 and we have 809; carry
this over 2, 75 (509), and we have 300 left and the 3OOth
word on (T, 76) the next column is "drink."
And so we have the statement that Shak'st-spurre is
the first-born sonne of a poor, sickly, woe-begone creature,
much given to drink.
Or, to show how complex is the nature of this work,
let us see if the addition and subtraction of 248 will not
bring out "Shak'st Spur" in another way.
Take 698 and deduct 248 and we have 450; add to
this the modifier, 508 (2, 75), and we have 958; deduct
29 and we have 929. Carry this through I, 75 (447)? and
we have 482 ; and this carried up 2, 75, brings us to the
28th word, the same "Shak'st"
We obtained "Spurre" by deducting 248 from 362, leav-
ing HA— =" Spurre."
But let us add 248 to 362, and we have 6iQf5o=66o.
Take the modifier 446 (i, 75) through this and we have
114 left, and 114 is again "Spurre."
252 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
These words ffSk&k'st" "Spurre" come out probably
twenty times by different countings.
For instance, take 505, deduct 29, and we have 476;
deduct 448 and we have 28="Shak'st."
Then take 505 again and add 50=555 ; deduct 167 and
we have 388; and 388 carried up I, 75 (447), brings us
to the 6oth word — "Spurre."
Here we see, as usual, 29 alternating with 167 and 50.
Or take 505 — 248=257; add 218 — 475 ; carry this
through i, 75 (447), and the remainder is 28, and 28 is
"ShaVst"
Or deduct 284 (i, 74) from 505, and we have 221 left;
carry this through 193 (i, 75) and the remainder is 28
="Shak'st."
Or deduct 30 from 312 and we have 282; carry this
through 254 (i, 75) and there are 28 left, and 28 is
"•Shak'st."
Or take 698 (5054-193) ; deduct 167=531—197=334;
and 334 taken up i, 75, brings us to the H4th word,
"Spurre," the same word already obtained several times
going down the column. And so we see how many times
the man of Stratford is referred to in the internal nar-
rative.
Take 946 (698+248) deduct 100 and we have left 846;
carry this through page 74 (532 words), and we have 314
left ; deduct 50 and we have 264 ; carry this up i, 75 (447),
and it brings us to the i84th word — "my"
Take 362; deduct 248=114; add 532=646+50=696;
carry this through page 74 (532), and we have 164 left;
and the i64th word on the preceding column, 2, 73, is —
"cousin."
"My" came from 698 plus 248; let us now deduct it
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 253
and we have 450 (which gave us "first-borne") ; add 509
(2, 75) and we have 959; add 50 and we have 1009;
deduct 29 and we have 980; carry this through p. 74
(532 words) and we have 448 left; carry this through
page 73 (406 words), and the remainder is 42; and this
taken up the next column (2, 72) brings us to the 54/th
word which is "gave"
"Cousin" came from 362 minus 248 ; let us now add 248
to 362 and we have 610, add 50 and we have 660. As
"cousin" and "gave" were obtained by going backward,
let us go forward to the bottom of I, 76, and carry 660
through 2, 76 (603 words), and the remainder is 57, and
the 57th word on the same column (2, 76) is — "her"
We recur now to 946 (698+248) and carry this through
the same column 2, 76 (603 words), and we have left 343.
Carry this up the next succeeding column (i, 77, — 577)
and it brings us to the 235th word, which is "majesty"
And so we have : "my cousin gave her majesty"
This word "her" is a rare word, and here is an im-
portant one^ for there are numerous references in the
cipher story to the Queen as "her Grace" "her Majesty"
"her Highness," etc. And the length of the columns is
so adjusted as to bring in the word "her" time and again
from all directions.
Thus we have just seen it derived from 362+248=610+
50=660 — 603=57, and 57 is "her" (And we have just
found 660 producing "cousin" )
But 362 is obtained by deducting 193 from 505+50. Let
us take 505 alone, carry it through the 1st section i, 76
(448 words), and there are 57 left, and 57 is "her" Thus
we see the 57th word, "her," reached from 2, 76, going
down the same column, by way of 505—7193+50; and also
254 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
from 505 — 448=57, from i , 76, going forward and down
the succeeding column.
But let us again recur to 946 ; add 50=996 ; deduct 448
(ist section i,' 76) and we have 548; and 548 carried up
that same column (2, 76) brings us again to "her."
( Thus : 698+248=946+50=996—448=1548 ; 604—548
=56+i=57="A£r."") So that up and down the column,
and forward and backward, the same word "her" comes
out.
We have just seen that 946 through 2, 76, produced
"majesty" "her majesty" But the "her" from 505 — 448
=57 does not connect with that word "majesty" but with
"grace" a term commonly applied to royalty. See fac-
similie of page 72, I5th line, col. I, where the Prince of
Wales says to his father, King Henry the Fourth :
"Cheerly my Lord ; how fares your grace" , > ,
Wre obtained "her" by carrying 505 through 448 and
•going do-wn the next column. Let us add 167 to 505 and
we have 672. Carry this again through 448 and we have
224 left; and 224 carried up from 457 (end ist section
of 2, 76) brings us to "grace" Thus 505+1671=672 — 448
=224; 457—224=233+1=234, (2, 76)=" grace" And
so we have "her grace"
This example alone ought to end all controversy as to
there being a cipher in the Plays. See how "her" is
connected with "majesty" in one instance and with
"grace" in the other! In each case "her*' goes down the
.column; and "grace" and "majesty" go up the columns;
"grace" up 2, 76, from 457 ; "majesty" up I, 77, from the
end of the column.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 255
But it may be said — why did not 224 (derived from
5054-167) go up from the bottom of col. 2, 76, instead of
from the bottom of the upper section of 2, 76. Well here
you have it : 604 — 224=380-1-1=381, and the 38ist word
is "well." And 167 alternates with 50; and so we deduct
50 from 505 and we have 455 ; and the 455th word on the
same column of 2, 76, is "horsed."
And so we have 'well-horsed" which means "well-
mounted"
"Well-horsed" what. -
We saw that 505+167=672. Add 100 and we have
772. Carry it through the modifier on 2, 75 (508), and
we have 264 left ; carry this up 2, 75 (509), and it brings
us to the 246th word, which is "soldiers"
Again take 672, add 50=722 ; add 29 and we have 75 1 ;
add 29 again and we have 780. Carry this through 448
(i, 76) and we have 332 left; and 332 taken up 2, 75,
brings us to the I78th word, which is "troops" (509 — 332
= 1 77+ 1 = 1 78=' ''tro ops" )
And so we have : "well horsed troops of soldiers"
The number 505, less 448, gave us "her" and "grace"
If we carry it to I, 75, the ist section there is 193, just
as 448 is the ist section of i, 76. Now 505 less 193 is
312 and the 31 2th word on 2, 75, is "sent" And 312 car-
ried up i, 76, from 498, brings us to the i87th word "out"
And so we have "Her grace" "sent out" "well horsed"
"troops of soldiers"
"Her grace" was "furious;" 312 is "sent;" 50 less tham
312 is 262, and 262 (2, 75) is "furious" Add 167 to 312
(sent"), and we have 479; and 479 (2, 75) is "wilde"
And 505+193=698; and plus 167 it is 865 and plus 50 it
is 915. Now carry 915 through i, 75 (447), and we
256 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
have 468 left; take this through 2, 74/248), and we have
220 left, and the 22Oth word is "rage;" and so we have :
"Her grace is furious, wild with rage, and hath sent out
well-horsed troops of soldiers/'
Now take 698 again ; add 50 and we have 748 ; add our
old modifier, 192, and we have 940. Carry this through
1, 75 (447), and we have 493; carry this through 2, 74
(248), and we have 245 left; take this up I, 74, and it
brings us to the 4Oth word, "ride."
Now we recur to 312; add 50, and we have 362; add
284 and we. have 646; carry this through 448 (i, 76), and
we have 198 left, and the I98th word on 2, 75, is "like."
"Ride" came from 698+50+192. Now let us take 312
and deduct 192 and we have 120 left; add 603 (2, 76)
and we have 723. Carry 723 through i, 75 (447), and
2, 74 (248), and we have 28 left; and this carried up
i, 74, brings us to "posts." And so we have "her grace"
hath "sent out" "ivell horsed troops of soldiers" to "ride
like posts."
But we need not pursue this farther. They are told
to ride like posts through the land, and find the zvhorson
monster Shak'st spurre, and bring him in alive or dead.
We return to the unfinished sentence from which we
branched off, to show how "her" (57, 2, 76) came from
both i, 76, and 2, 76. We had worked out the words :
"My cousin gave her majesty" from 312 and 698 (505 —
I93=312; and 505+193=698).
What is next? What did "my cousin" give "her
majesty?"
"Her" was obtained from 362+248=610 — 603=57.
The alternate number is 362 — 248=114. Add 498 (i, 76)
to 1 14, and we have 612 ; add 100 and we have 712+167=
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 257
879+29=908. Bring this to page 74 and carry it through
532, and we have 376; take this through 2, 73 (237), and
we have 139 left, and the I39th word, on i, 73, is "many!1
"Majesty" came from 946 (698+248) "we now deduct
248 from 698 and we have 450, (which gave us "first-
borne," etc.) ; deduct 167 from 450 and we have 283 ; and
283 taken up i, 75, brings us to the i65th word, "in-
stances." And so we have : "my cousin gave her majesty
many instances."
The last word down the column was derived from
362 — 248; now we add them and have 610. To this we
add 447 and it gives us 1057; deduct 100 and we have
957; carry this through 2, 76 (604 words), and it brings
us to 353 on i, 77, which is "to"
"Instances" came from 698 minus 248. We nov take
698+248=946. Add 167 and we have 1113. Carry this
through 447 and we have 666 left; add 29 and we have
695. Carry this through page 73 (406 words) and we
have 289; and this taken up 2, 72 (from 588), brings us
to the 3OOth word, "prove"
We come now to 362 — 248=114; add 532 (p. 74) and
we have 646 (this gave us +50 — "cousin"} carry this
through page 73 (406 words) and we have 240; deduct
167 and we have 73 — 50=2 3="that"
The last up- word "prove" was from 946 ( 698 f 248) ;
we. take the alternate 698 — 248=450. Add to this 508
(2, 75) and we have 958; deduct 29 and we have 929.
Carry this through i, 75 (447), and we have 482 left, and
this taken up 2, 75, brings us, as before, to the 28th word :
"Shak'st" Here 482 is produced by a new counting.
We return to 362+ 248=6 TO ; carry this through 2, 74
(248), and we have 362 left; deduct 248 from this and
17
258 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
we have 1 14 left, and the i I4th word on i, 75, is "Spurre."
We return to 946 and deduct the modifier 603 (2, 76)
and we have 343 left; deduct 100 and we have 243 left;
carry this up 2, 75 (509), and it brings us to the 267th
word "had."
We now take 362 — 248=114; add 284 (i, 74) and we
have 398; carry this through 2, 74 (248), and we have
150; and the I5oth word on the next column (i, 75) is
"never?
We return to 450; add 532=982 — 50=932+29=961.
Carry this to bottom of 2, 76, and take it through I, 77
(577 words), and we have 384 left; and this taken up
2, 77, brings us to the 228th word, "written"
We return to 362+248=610; add 447=1057; deduct 50
and we have 1007. Carry this through page 74 (532
words) and we have 475 left; and this carried through
page 73 (406 words) leaves 69, and the 69th word (2, 72)
is, "these."
We take 946; add 167=1113+50=1163 — 29=1134.
Carry this through pages 74 and 73 (532 and 406) and
we have 196 left, and this taken up from the bottom of
2, 72 (589 words), brings us to the 394th word, "playes"
Here are more miracles of accident!
Look at these words : "ivritten these playes."
Turn back to page 186 and see how these same words —
the very same — 228 (2, ^)="zvritten;" 69 (2, 72) —
"these," and 394 (2, 72)=" playes" — came out from 505-4-
248 and 505 — 248 ; and then turn to page 187 and observe
how these same words came from 505+248 plus and
minus 192 and 505—2484-253, the alternate of 192; and
then consider that these very same words have been just
worked out from 505 plus and minus 193 (312 and 698).
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 259
And remember that in the first instance the word
"written" is obtained by starting from the last word of
section one of col. 2 of p. 76. Thus : 753+50=803^167=
970+447=1417 — 457=961. And here, in the last ex-
ample* we have 450+532=982 — 50=932+29=961 ; and
so by these different countings we reach 961 three dhier-
ent times.
And in like manner 753 — 192=561+509, etc., less 147
(lower section 2, 76) brings us again to 961. Why? Be-
cause 961 carried through i, 77 (577), leaves 384, and
384 carried up 2, 77, brings us to "written;" 961 — 577=
384; 611 — 384=227+ i=22%=='\vritten" And in like
manner "playcs" in each case, starts from the end of page
74, 532, runs through page 73 and is carried up 2, 72, and
it is brought to that point by three different countings!
I will not insult the intelligence of the reader by asking
him if all this came about by accident ! The length of
those subdivisions of 2, 76, and the length of columns one
and two of page 77 had to be prearranged to make the
word "written" possible by two of these countings, and if
there had been a single word more or less on I, 77, or in
the subdivisions of 2, 76, the other examples would not
have been possible.
And look at this whole sentence :
"My cousin gave her majesty many instances to prove
that Shak'st-spurre had never written these playes."
And so you see the Bacon- Shakespere controversy was
in full blast three hundred years ago.
These words go alternately up and down the columns.
They are the result of alternately subtracting 193 from 505
(=312), or adding 193 to 505 (=698) ; and alternately
adding 248 to or deducting it from 698; or alternately
260 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
adding 248 to or subtracting it from 312. And note the
absolute correctness with which this complex problem is
worked out !
And remember that the mechanism and system by
which 505, plus and minus 193, tells its story, is precisely
the same as the mechanism and system by which 505
plus and minus 248 told the long story I have given in
the foregoing pages.
And I have material enough collected to make four or
five such books as this ; and the same system and mechan-
ism runs through it all — out to the very extremities.
And here let me give another example, where the play of
"the Contention between Yorke and Lancaster" is again
referred to. I showed (on page 215 ante) these words
coming out of 753 (505+2481=753) plus and minus 167;
and 257 (505 — 248^=257) plus and minus 447; and also
derived from that other root numbe'r, 523, plus and minus
167; and 523 plus and minus 448. And here, in this
marvellous text, we find that play again referred to, in
the internal story, and coming out of 312 and 698 (505
plus 193, and minus 193) pins and minus 197!
Thus:
The root number 505 — 193—312 — 167=1145 — 29=116
(2, 75) "that."
The next number 698 (505+193=698) goes up the col-
umn: 698 — 50=648 — 197=45 1+193=644 f 1 93 again =
837. And this 837 carried through I, 75 (447), leaves
390; still carried backward through 2, 74 (248), it leaves
142; and 142 taken up i, 74 (284), brings us to the I43d
word, which is "well-known."
We recur to 362 and add 248 and we have 610 ; add 248
again and we have 858, deduct 29 and we have 829 ; carry
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 261
this through i, 75 (447), and we have 382 left; carry this
through 2, 74 (248 words), and we have 134 left, and the
1 34th word, i, 74, is "play."
And so we have : "that well-known play."
The last up- word ("well-known") came from 698 minus
50=648. This one comes from 698 plus 50=748. To
get " iv ell-known" we deducted 197, now we add i.t : 748
+197=945—50=895. Carry this through I, 75 (447) ,
and it leaves 448; carry this up 2, 75 (509), and it brings
us to the 62d word, "the."
Take now 362+248=610; add 248 again and we have
858. Deduct 50 and we have 808; add 197 and we have
1005; carry this through 2, 75 (509), and we have 496
left and the 496th word on the same column is "Conten-
tion." And remember that 362+532=894+50=944; and
that this carried through 448 (ist section, i, 76) leaves
496; and this going backward brings us to the same 496
(2, 75) "Contention" which we have just reached through
509 going forward!
Queer accident this that reaches 496 — "Contention" —
from 362+532 (p. 74) backward through I, 76; and from
362+248, one of the columns of 532, p. 74, through
2, 75 (the next column to i, 76), forward!
We can scarcely touch a point of this text that does
not bristle with the most careful arithmetical adjustments !
But to proceed :
The next word is to go up the column, and comes from
698. Add to 698 50 and we have again 748. To get
the last tip-word "the" we added 197; now we deduct it:
748—197=551+193=744. Carry this through i, 75
(447), and we have 297 left; take this through 2, 74
(248), and we have 49 left; and carry this up the next
262 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
column (i, 74) and it brings us to the 236th word, "be-
tvjeen."
We recur to 362 and deduct 248 instead of adding it,
and the remained is 114. Add the modifier 446and we have
560; add 197=757 — 29=728 — 29 again =699. Carry
this through 532 and we have 167 left ; and the i67th word
on the next column (2, 73) is "Yorke."
We return to 698 ; again deduct 501=6484- 1971=2845 ;
carry this through I, 75 (447), and we have 398 left;
carry this up 2, 76 (604), and it brings us to the 2O7th
word, "and."
We return to 362. The last time we deducted 248 ; now
we add it, and we have 610; add 197 and we have 807+29
=836. Carry this through 2, 75 (509), and we have 327
left; and the 327th word (2, 75) is "Lancaster."
And here is another evidence of adjustment. This 836
is the primal root-number, obtained by multiplying 76,
(page 76) by n, the number of bracketed words on i, 74,
counting "post-horse' as two words. And so, after long
wandering the columns are so adjusted as to give us 836,
so we could again get the word "Lancaster" part of the
name of the play, attributed by the critics to both Shaks-
pere and Marlow, but whose real author was Francis
Bacon.
And so we have : "that well-known play, the Conten-
tion between Yorke and Lancaster." And these words not
only all come from 362 and 698; but every one of the
698 words is plus or minus 197, in regular order. "Con-
tention" comes from 36 2 plus 248 \" Yorke" from 362 minus
248: and "'Lancaster" from 362 plus 248; plus, minus,
plus!
It would be extraordinary to find those words "Con-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 263
tention," "between," "Yorke" and "Lancaster" on three
pages of this play, or any other play, but to see them
cohering by the same numbers, and by two or three other
sets of numbers, settles the question of the existence of
a cipher herein.
I desire now to briefly show how the cipher ramifies into
the minutest branches ; and how every line of the text is
full of cipher.
Take the root number 523; add to it the modifier 218,
and we have 741. Now take the same root number, 523,
and deduct 218, instead of adding it — we then have 305.
On col. 2, 76, the upper section has 456 words above the
last word. Add 456 to 305 and we have 761. And these
two numbers, 741 and 761, tell a long story — 741 going up
the columns and 761 going down them ; and both of them
carried through 448, the upper section of I, 76. After-
wards the movement is reversed, and 741 goes down the
columns and 761 goes up.
Take 741 and carry it through 448 and it leaves 293.
Take 293 up from the bottom of that same 448 and it
lands us on the I56th word, which is "bring" (448 —
293=1 55+ 1=1 $6="bring")
And here we see how the text is twisted and enforced
to obtain the cipher words needed. The line of the play
"Or what hath this bold enterprise bring forth."
It should be "brought forth;" but the cipher required
the word "bring" and there it is.
Now as 293 up i, 76, took us to "bring" let us see
what 293 will yield us if carried up the next sue-
264 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
ceeding column, 2, 76 (604 words). Here we have it;
604 — 293=3 1 1+1=31 2, and the 3 1 2th word, 2, 76, is
"horson."
But if we take that alternate number 761, and carry it
down through 448, it leaves 313 and the 31 3th word on
that same column. 2, 76, is "smooth-pates." The line
reads :
"The horson smooth-pates do now wear nothing."
Thus we see that the text has been so adjusted that
761 down, minus 448, produces 313=" smooth-pates" and
741 minus 448, up the column, leads us to the adjoining
3i2th word "horson." And we have "bring the horson
smooth-pates."
A shameful disease, lately introduced by the sailors
of Columbus, from America, through Spain and France,
had produced in England a great amount of baldness,
which was characteristic of the more degraded classes, like
actors ; and hence Shakspere and his companions — by
law accounted "vagabonds"- - are here referred to as
"horson smooth-pates."
But as 293 carried up columns i and 2 of 76 brought
us "bring" and "horson" let us take it up the preceding
column, 2, 75, and we have 509 — 293=216+1=217=1^
"speed"
Let us then take 761, add 100=861 ; deduct 197=
664; carry this through 448 and we have 216 left, and
the 2 1 6th word (2, 75) is "greatest" And so we have
"greatest speed."
Let us take 741 again and add 50, and we have 791 ;
deduct 29 and we have 762 ; carry it through 448 and the
remainder is 314, and this carried up from the bottom of
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 265
448 brings us to the I35th word (i, 76), which is "go."
The next word comes from 761. Add 447 to 761 and
we have 1208, +50=1258; carry this through page 75
(956 words), and we have 302 left; carry this through
2, 74 (248),, still going backwards, and we have 54 left,
and the 54th word on i, 74, is "with"
Take 741, add 447 and we have 1188; add 197 and we
have 1285^-50+49=1384; carry this through 2, 76 (604),
and i, 77 (577), =1181; deduct 1181 from 1384 — 203
and this taken up 2, 77, brings us to the 4O9th word, "the."
And this gives us, "go with the greatest speed"
And here, let it be observed, that if we add 197 to 135
(the word "go") we have 332, and the 332d word on
i, 76, is "Bishop." Thus: 741— 1 97=544+50=594—
29=565, and this carried through 448 leaves 117, and
117, carried up 448, brings us to 332=" Bishop."
Now take 741 again, but instead of adding 50 deduct
it, and we have 691 ; (the last time we deducted 197) ;
add 197, and we have 888; deduct 29 (the last time we
added 50), and we have 859; carry this through 2, 76
(604), and we have 255, and this, taken up 2, 75, brings
us to the 255th word : "Worcester."
And so you perceive that the words "Bishop" and
"Worcester" come out by an entirely new method. And
it is the "Bishop of Worcester," Sir John Whitgift, that
advised the bringing in of Shakspere, and the "horson
smooth-pates" — the actors of his company.
We have seen what an important part the modifier
197 plays in this part of the cipher story. We do not
find 167 used here.
Let us take that number which gave us "speed"
"bring" and "horson" to-wit, 293 (741 — 448=293),
266 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
and deduct from it 197 and we have 96 left. Carry this
up from the bottom of col. i, 76 (498 words), and it
brings us to the /j.O3d word, "before." Or this can be
obtained by adding 50 to 156=206; and adding 197 and
it gives us 403 : "before."
Now add 447 to 741 and we have 1188; deduct 29
and we have 1159; carry this through i, 76 (448), and
2, 76 (604), and we have 107 left, and the io7th word
up i, 77 (577), is the 471 st word, "Counsel" And so
we have, "go with the greatest speed and bring the hor-
son smooth-pates before the Counsel. (Council.)
And here we have the "Bishop" again; for the Bishop
of Worcester played an important part in all these trans-
actions.
Take 761+448—12094-50=1259. Carry this through
Pa£e 75 (956 words), and we have 303 left, add 29 and
we have 332==" 'Bishop" This came from the begin-
ning of i, 75, carried forward; now let us take the same
root number, 761, add 100 and we have 86 1 ; carry this
to i, 77; take it through i, 77 (577 words), and we have
284 left; deduct 29 and we have 255, and the 255th word
on 2, 75, is "Worcester"
And here we have "Bishop^ and "Worcester" coming
out, by another new method, going down the columns ;
while a minute ago we saw the same words obtained by
going up the columns. Surely there is either a cipher
in this text or his Satanic majesty is stirred all through
it!
But what about the Bishop of Worcester?
We saw 293, which produced "bring" "horson,"
"speed" etc.,, minus 197 gave us "before" which is 403 ;
let us add 50 and we have 453, which (i, 76) is "saies."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 267
"The Bishop of Worcester says." "Worcester" went
down the column, while "sales" went up the column.
Take 741—197=544+448=992—248=744—509=
235; and this carried up I, 75 (447), brings us to the
2i3th word — "zvhen" And this links on to "horson
"smooth-pates — "when (you bring) the horson-smooth-
pates." "Smooth pates" came from 761 — 448=313=
"smooth-pates"
The next word "see" Add to 741, 197 and we have
938. Carry this through 448 and we have 490 left; and
this taken up the preceding column, 2, 75, brings us to
the 20th word — "sec"
Now take 761 — 448=313, and add 197=510; carry
this through 1st section, i, 74 (448), and we have 62
left, and the 62d word (2,76) is — "the"
We saw that 293 (741 — 448=293) carried up through
448 (i, 76) brought us to the I56th word, "bring" Now
deduct 50 from 293=1=243, and this adds 50 to 156=206,
and 206 is "peril" ("When the horson smooth-pates see
the peril"} Compare 741+197 — 44%=" see" and 741 —
448=293 ; 498— 293=" peril"
We take 761, carry it through 2, 76 (604 words), and
we have 57 left. On 2, 76, it gave us "her" but on i, 77,
it is "in."
To get "see" we added 197 to 741=938; now we
deduct it and have 544, the same number that brought
us "when" ("zvhen they see the peril") ; we deduct 100
and have 444; this taken up 2, 75 (509), brings us to the
66th word, "which." Carried up i, 75, it gives us the
4th word "John" — "Sir John the Bishop of Worcester"
Now take 86r, add 197=1058; add the modifier 446
(x> 75) and we have 1454, plus 29=1483. Carry this
268 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
through page 75 (956 words) and through 2, 74 (248
woids), and the remainder is 279, and the 279th word
(1,74) is "they."
Now revert to 741 — 448=293 ; deduct 29 and we have
264; carry this up 2, 76 (from 604), and it brings us to
the 34 ist word — "must.''
Turn again to 761 — 448=313; add 29 (we have just
deducted it) and we have 342, and the 342d word on
2, 76, is "stand!' Here again, as in the case with "horson
smooth-pates" and "greatest speed'' the movements up
and down ^the particular columns bring out words that
stand together in the text. Here we have "must stand,"
derived from 293 — 29 and 313+29.
And so we have : "when the horson smooth-pates see
the peril in which they must stand."
Every word here is derived from 523+ or — 218; modi-
fied by + or — 197 ; or + or — 29 ; and developed out of
that block of words, I, 76, 448 words!
And Sir John goes on to tell the Queen that after a
time, "rather than stand imprisonment any longer"- -"the
horson smooth-pates" will "make a confession."
Thus: 741+447=1188; carry this through 448 and
604 (2, 76), and we have 130 left, and this taken up i, 77,
brings us to the 442d word, "make."
This is 741+447. Now let us deduct 447 from 741
and we have 294 left +193=487; and this carried up
2» 75 (5°9)> brings us to the 23d word, "Confession."
And: 741 — 448=293 — 192=101 — 29=372; carry 72
up 2, 75, and it brings us to the 533d word, "tell."
Now take 761 ; which comes from 305+456=761. Let
us take 305 — 50=255+197=452 — 29=423; and the
423d word, i, 76, is "every."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. .269
We recur to 741, add 100 and we have 841 ; add 448
and we have 1289; carry this through 604 and we have
685 left; take this through i, 77 (577), and we have 108
left ; and this carried up 2, 77, brings us to the 5O4th word,
which is "thing."
And so we have growing, every word, out of 448, by
523 plus and minus 218, the following story:
"The Bishop of Worcester says : 'Go with the greatest
speed and bring the horson smooth-pates before the
Council; and zvhen they see the peril in which they must
stand they will make a confession and tell everything.' ''
And there is further talk about standing longer im-
prisonment: and their fears of losing their cars.
And what is it all about? Certain treasonable plays
have been put forth in the name of "William Shakes-
peare," which Cecil and the Archbishop, formerly Bishop
of Worcester,, assure the Queen were written with intent
to breed an insurrection, by bringing on the stage a scene
where the Parliament deposes a king, and he is after-
wards murdered in prison. "Richard the Second," said
Queen Elizabeth, "know you not that / am Richard the
Second. * * This tragedy was played forty times
in open streets and houses."
The play of Richard the Second was written to ac-
custom the public mind to the idea of the dethronement
of the Lord's annointed sovereign.
But why should the author and actors stand in such
peril, and be afflicted with imprisonment, or the loss of
their ears, to say nothing of being burned alive? Was
it a deadly crime to write or act a historical play?
Let us see.
And here we have another development of the cipher.
270 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We have seen that 523+218 told a long story. But 218
(the number of words above the last section of 2, 74)
and 29 (the number of words below it) go together —
505+29=534 and 505+218=723.
Take 723; add -167=890; add 448=1338. Carry this
through p. 75 (956 words), and we have 382 left; carry
this through i, 74 (248 words), and we have 134 left;
and the I34th word on I, 74, is "play."
We obtained "play" by adding 448 to 723. Let us now
deduct it: 723 — 448=275; and the 275th word (2, 75)
is "King."
The alternate of 723 (505+218=723) is 534 (505+29=
534). Carry 534 through 448 and we have 86 left; and
86 taken up i, 76 (448), brings us to the 363d word, which
is "Richard."
Here we deducted 448 from 534; let us now add 448
to 534, and we have 982 ; carry this through the next
column (604) and the remainder is 378; carry this up
i, 77 (577), and it brings us to the 2OOth word, "of."
But let us go back a little, and take 534, and again add
448, and we have 982; add 197 and we have 1179+167=
1346. Carry this also through p. 75 (956 words), and
through 2, 74 (248 words), and we have 142 left, and
this taken up i, 74, brings us to the I43d word, "well-
known." (We will soon see "well-known" reached going
down the column.)
And so we have the significant words, "well-known
play of King Richard" coming alternately from the con-
nected numbers of 505+218 and 505+29.
A few moments ago we saw "well-known" coming
from 698 (505+193), and "play" derived from 362 (505
— 193+5°)- Here the reference was to "the well-known
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI,AYS. 271
play of the Contention bet-ween Yorke and Lancaster."
Here the columns and fragments of columns are so ar-
ranged as to bring out, "well known play of King
Richard."
We saw that "Richard" was the 363d word (i, 76),
derived from 534 (505+29) ; let us deduct 50 and we have
313, add 29 and we have 342 (i, ?6)=fhis"
Now take again 505+218=1723, add 167=890; carry
this through 448 (i, 76), and the remainder is 442; and
the 442d word on the preceding column, 2, 75, is "aim."
We come again to 534+448=982 — 100=882; carry
this up 2, 77 (611 words), and we have 271 left and this
taken up i, 77, brings us to the 3O7th word, "is"
We recur to 723, add 167=890 — 509=381 — 192=189
(2, 75)="«f."
Again, we take 534 — 448=86+167+29=282. Carry
this up the preceding column (2, 75) and we have 508 —
282=227+1=228="^."
We recur to 723 and add 167—890+100=990+192=:
1.182: carry this through page 75 (956 words), and we
have 226 left, and the 226th word on 2, 74, is "way."
We turn to 534, and this time we add 448=982 — 509=
473, and this carried up 2, 75, brings us to the 37th word,
"if, 9/'
We take 723 again; add 448=1171; carry it through
page 75 (956 words), and we have 215 left; add again
218 and we have 433, and the 433d word (i, 75), is
"make."
And so we have, "his aim, in this well-known play of
King Richard, is to make a bloody insurrection"
Again take 534, deduct 448=86+197=283 ; carry this
up from bottom of 1st section 2, 76 (457), and it brings
us to the 1 75th word (2, 76)="a/>
272 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We recur to 505+2 18=72 3+1 67=890+448=1 338+29
=11367. Carry this through page 75 (956 words), and we
have 411 left; and this carried through 2, 74 (248 words),
leaves 163, and the i63d word on i, 74, is "bloodie."
We saw that 534 — 448=86 and 86 taken up i, 76
brought us to the 363d word "Richard;" now carry the
count 29 words further up that column and it brings us
to the 334th word, "insurrection!' And we find Queen
Elizabeth saying, "know you not that / am Richard the
Second; this tragedy was played forty times in open
streets and houses."
We perceive therefore that this part of the cipher
story relates largely to the plots of the Essex faction to
secure possession of the government and place James of
Scotland, the next heir, on the throne.
These words "King Richard/' referring to the play of
"Richard the Second," are used over and over again in
the internal narrative.
Take, for instance, the cipher numbers which told so
much of the story given in these pages, to-wit : 505 — 248
=257 and 505,4-248=753.
Add 100 to 753 and we have 853 ; deduct 192 and we
have 66 1 ; add 29 and we have 690; carry this through
2, 76 (604), and we have a remainder of 86; and this
taken up i, 76, brings us again to that 363d word,
"Richard."
Now take 257 (the alternate of 753), add 50 and we
have 307, and the 3O7th word on 2, 75, is "King" — "King
Richard."
And the same numbers bring out the words : "usurpa-
tion scene." This was the famous scene which represent-
ed the deposition of King Richard the Second; which
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 273
the author did not dare to publish until after the Queen's
death (1608). Part of the offence which brought the
head of Essex to the block consisted in having hired this
play of Richard the Second to be acted the night before
the outbreak. (See "The Great Cryptogram," page 619.)
And the Queen made Bacon prosecute Essex on that
especial charge, and Bacon objected, because he tells us,
"it would be said I was giving in evidence mine own
tales!"
And we have "busily engaged" given heretofore; and
753—447=306—50=256—29=227 ; 447—227=2204-1
=22 1 (1,75) = ' usurpation"
And 257+100=357+167=524—509=15 (i, 76)=
"scene."
This is connected with the second "busily engaged."
"He was busily engaged on the usurpation scene in King
Richard."
Or take 505— 193=312+50=362="^^."
And then take 505+29=534; 534—448=86; 448—86
And so we have the words : "King Richard" coming to-
gether (362, i 76 and 363, i, 76) in the text just as they
come together in the cipher narrative !
And here we have it again, from the root numbers we
are now working with — 741 and 761.
741—604=137; 498—137=361+1=362 (i, 76)^-
"King"
761—448=313+50=363 (i, 76)— 'Richard "
Again the cipher words come together in the text, (362,
i, 76, 363, i, 76.)
And here we have it again, plus and minus 192 :
18
274 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
332+50=382—248 (2, 74)=i34 (i, 74)= "play"
257— 192=65+100=165+197=
362 (i, 76)= "King"
753—248=505+253=758+29=
789—509=278—192=86; 448—
86=362 1-1=363= "Richard."
This last 278 carried up i, 76, brings us to 171 (i, 76)
=" engaged." And 257+192+167=616+100=716—532
=184 (2, K)="busily."
And 192 added to 171 (engaged) makes 363=" : Rich-
ard." The arithmetical relationships of these words are
simply marvellous.
Take for instance the words "Sir John" referring to
the "Bishop of Worcester."
741—448=293—50=243—167=76 ; 604—76=528+1
=529 (2, 76)="Str."
761—448=313+50=363+167=530 (2, 76)="John."
Or see how it comes out another way :
741 minus 50=691 — 167=524 — 448=76 (up) ; 604
--76=5284-1=529 "(2, 76)="SfV."
761+50=811+167=978 — 448=530 (down) (2, 76)=
"John."
See how the words come together, 529 "Sir" and 530
"John."
And the last name of the Archbishop, "Sir John Whit-
gift." is also repeatedly given in this text.
I remember that when I published "The Great Crypto-
eram" in England I fell into an error as to Sir John's
last name ; I mixed him up with his successor at Wor-
cester, Sir John Babbington ; and Mr. George Stronach,
of the Advocate's Library, of Edinburgh, Scotland, in
my defence, pointed out, in a newspaper article, the fact
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 275
that, on page 77 of the Folio, the words "Wit" and
"Gifts" and "Sir" and "John" appeared; and he said
that they probably covered references to Sir John Whit-
gift," at one time Bishop of Worcester. And he was
right.
For sure enough here it is :
I stated that when a couple of cipher numbers told
part of the story, going up and down the columns, they
would, when reversed, tell another portion of the same
tale. I showed how 312 (505 — 193=312) down the col-
umn, and 698 (505+193=698) up the same, gave us
part of the cipher narrative; and that then 312
up and 698 down the columns gave us more of it.
We have been working out a story with 741 up and
761 down. Now let us reverse it ; and send 741 down
the columns and 761 up.
Carry 741 through i, 77 (577 words), and we have 164
left (741 — 577=164) and the i64th word on the next
column (2, 77) is "gifts" This is part of the sentence,
"Sir John Witgift's advice."
Now "wit" comes between "John" and "gifts" John
must, therefore, also come from 741.
I spoke heretofore of the cunning methods employed
by Bacon to establish points of departure for the cipher;
and referred to the fact that he had inserted, on page 1,77,
at the 28oth word, an unnecessary bracket mark. Now
from that 28oth word down to the bottom of the column
there are, 297 words. Deduct 297 from 741 and we have
444 left, and the 444th word on the next column is
"John."
Now let us take that 28oth word and deduct it from
761 — 28o=48i-j-5a==:53i ; add 197 and we have 728;
276 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
carry this through i, 77 (577), and we have 151 left, and
this carried up 2, 77, brings us to the 461 st word — "wit."
Take now 761 again; again add 50, making 811; de-
duct 29 and we have 782; carry this through the ist
section of 2, 76 (457),, and we have 325 left, and this
taken up 2, 77, brings us to the 287th word, "Sir."
Take 761 again ; add 49 ( i, 76) and we have 8iQf5o=:
860; add to this the 2d section on 2, 76, 145, and we have
1005 ; carry this through 2, 77 (611 words), and we have
394 left; and this carried up i, 77 (577), brings us to the
1 84th word, ''advice." And so we have, "Sir John Wit-
gift's advice.''
up 761+50=811 — 29 minus 457= "Sir"
down 741 — 2971=444= "John"
up 761+50=811 — 280+197= "Wit"
down 741 — 577=164= "gift's"
up 761+49=810+50=860+145=
1005—611=394; 577—394=
183+1=184, "advice"
It would be strange enough to find in the text (if all
this is accident), close to the oft-repeated words —
"Bishop of Worcester" — the words "Sir John Wit gifts;"
but it is stranger still to find the words "John" "Wit"
"gifts" all on the second column of page 77; and "Sir"
on the preceding column, i,, 77. And stranger still to
find "gifts" derived from i, 77 (577 words), and "John"
and "wit'' coming from the 28oth word, the first break
on that -page, i, 77, where the bracket mark is placed.
"John" from 297, the number of words below the 28oth
word, and "wit" from the 28oth word itself! While
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 277
"Sir" c.omes from 76.1 minus the upper section of 2, 76,
to-wit — 457: and (f advice" conies from 761, plus the
lower section of 2, 77, viz. — 145 !
Here is certainly a string of miracles !
But the name of "Sir John Whitgift" is used, like
other significant words, more than once in the cipher
story. Here we have it again:
down 523+167=690+167=857—
448=409+49 (i, 76)=458, (2,76) "Sir"
up 523—448=75 ; 75 up 604=
529+1=530, (2, 76) "John"
down 523+167=690+167=857—
448=409+49=458+29=
487—448=39, (2, 76) "Wit"
up 523+448=971+192=1 163+
29=1 192 — 167=1025—
577=448; 611—448=163+
1=164, (2, 77) "gW
down 523+167=690 — 50=640 —
456 (2, 76) =184, ( i, 77) "advice"
And it refers to him as "the present archbishop :"
down 523+167=690+167=857—
448=409, ( i , 76 ) "present"
ap 523+448=971—253=718-
509=209 ; 448—209=239+1
—240, (1,76) "archbishop"
Observe the regularity of all this : 523+167=690,
produces "Sir" "Wit" and "advice;" 523 minus 448
278 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
gives us "John;" and 523. f 448 gives us "archbishop" and
"gifts/' In the last example "gifts'" was obtained by go-
ing ctow/w the column ; here it is reached by going up the
column; "advice" in the last example went up the col-
umn; here it goes down the column. Think of the in-
finite and subtle adjustments necessary for all this !
But here is even a more striking proof of the exist-
ence of the cipher.
There are — on this page 76 — four fragments. The first
on i, 76, contains 448 words. We have seen how many
words are derived from this.
The second section of I, 76, contains 50 words, or 49
below the ist word of the subdivision.
The first section of 2, 76, contains 457 words, and gives
us 456 as a modifier, above the last word of the sub-
division.
The second section of 2, 76, contains, below the ist
word of the section — 145 words.
Now let us take those modifiers, 456 and 145, from
the same column, and see how they work, alternately,
added to and subtracted from 523.
down 523—145—378, ( i, 76) "he"
up 523+456—979—57? (i, 77)
=402; 604 — 402=202+ 1 =
203, (2, 76) "never'
down 523+145=668 — 448=220, (2, 76) "writ"
up 523— 456=67+50=1 17+50
=167 ; 604—167=438, (2, 76) "a"
down 523— 145=3784-448=826
—509=317, (i,76) "word"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 279
up 523+456=979+448=1427—
=413; 448—413=35+!=
36, (
down 523+145=668+50=718+448
=1 166—509=657—448=
209, (2, 76) "if
Examine this carefully — 523 minus 145 gives us "he/'
523 plus 145 gives us "writ;" 523 minus 145 gives us
hand, 523 plus 456 gives us "never;" and 523 minus 448
hand 523 plus 456 gives us "never;" and 523 minus 448
gives us "a" while 523 plus 456 gave us "of." And the
resulting words, "he never writ a zuord of it" go to the
heart of the controversy that was raging about the court,
as to the authorship of the famous plays.
And here is another striking example of another branch
of the cipher.
Speaking of Shakspere the Bishop says :
down 505+192=1697+49=746+167
=913—448=465, (2,75) "the"
up 505— 253=252+ 167=419 ;
604 — 419=185+1=186+
145=331, (2, 76) "man"
down 505+192=697+493=746+167
=913 ; 913—604=309, ( i, 77) "hath"
up 505—253=252+167=419 ;
604—419=185+1=186, (2, 76) "not"
down 5o5+i92=697+49=746f 167
+9 1 3—509=404, ( i , 75 ) "knowledge"
up 505—253=252+167=419 ;
457—419=38+1=39, (2, 76) "wit"
280 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
down 505+192=697—253=444, ( I, 76) "nor'
up 505—253=252+167=419 ;
448 — 419=29+1=30, (1,76) "wisdom"
down 505+192=697 — 49=648 —
498=150, (1,76) "or"
up 5o5+253=758+5o=8o8+ioo
=908+167=1075+197=
1272—1188 (p, 77) =84;
469 (1,78)— 84=385+1=
386, (l>7&) "imagination"
down 505+192=697 — 49=648 —
50=598+253=85 1—509=
342, (2,75) "enough"
up 505—253=252+167=419 ;
509—4 1 9=90+1=9 1+29=
120, (2,75) "to"
down 505+192=697+49=746—
i67=579—49&=8i, (2,76) "have"
up 505—253=252-1-167=419 ;
+532-=95 1—50=901—509
=392+29=421 ; 509—421
=88+1=89, (2,75) "ever"
down 505+192=697 — 29=668 —
448=220, (2, 76) "writ"
up 505—253=252+167=419+
167=586; 586—29=557+
448=1005—956 (p. 75) =
495248 — 49=199+1=200, (2,74) "these"
down 505+192=697+49=746—
100=646+253=899+448=
1 347— 956=39 1— 248=
143, (J>74) "well-knoivn"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 281
up 505— 253=252+167=419
—50=369—192=177; 448
-177=448—177=271+!
=272, (1,76) "shows"
Here it will be observed that every down-word is
from 505+192 ; and every tip-word is from 505 — 253 ; the
numbers 192 and 253 being the upper and lower modi-
fiers on column i of p. 75. And 505 — 253=252+167=:
419, and 4.19 carried up the columns brings us to the
connected words — "man" — "not" — "wit" — "wisdom" —
"to"— "ever"— "these"— "shows."
"Shows" in that day meant plays. Bacon speaks
of "triumphs, masks, feasts and such shows."
Let the reader run his eye down the first column of
the foregoing table, and then ask himself whether such
significant words as : "the man hath not knowledge, wit
nor wisdom, or imagination enough to have ever writ
these well-known shows" could have come out by acci-
dent, on four contiguous pages of the Folio, each word
from 505+192 or 505 — 253, alternately going up and down
the columns ? It is a physical impossibility.
Then think of the coherence of the words themselves —
"knowledge" "wit," "wisdom" "imagination" "enough"
"writ" "these" "well-known" and "shows"
And these words are not to be found everywhere, so
that any ledgerclemain can bring them out. "Knowledge"
is found but one other time in all this play (2 H. IV.) ;
'"zvisdorn" but one other time; "writ" but one other
time; "imagination" only this once (and but thirty times
in all the plays) ; "well-knoivn" appears only this once;
and "shows" is found but two other times in this play.
282 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
And yet here they all are in a bunch, on four pages, re-
sponding to the call of 505+192 and 505 — 253 !
A moment ago we obtained the word ffweU-knowrff
by going up the column ; now we get it going down the
same column !
The Bishop is requested to read the plays and give his
opinion upon them. He pronounces them "extraordinari-
ly able."
Take 761, deduct 100 and we have 661 ; add 280 (that
ist section i, 77, just referred to), and we have 941;
carry this through 448. and the remainder, on 2,77, is 493,
which is "extraordinarily."
Take 741 and deduct 145 (the 2nd section 2, 76), and
we have 596; carry this up 2, 76 (604), and it brings us
to the 9th word — "able"- -"extraordinarily able."
And here is another proof of the complex arrangements
of the cipher — add 100 to 596, just given, and we have
696; deduct 577 (i,, 77)=i 19, and 119 carried up column
2, 77, brings us to that same word "extraordinarily." And
761 carried through i, 77 ( 577)^184 ; and this — 29=
155; and this carried from the end of ist section 2, 76,
146, leaves 9, and 9 (2, 76) is the same word "able."
And so we have "extraordinarily" and "able" both down
and up the columns !
We saw that 471 carried through 604 left 137, and
137 carried up i, 76 (498), brought us to 362, (King)
of "King Richard." Now take the same 137 up 2, 76
(604), and it brings us to the 468th word "striking."
Take 761+50=811+50=861 — 604=257 (1,77) "and"
Take 741+100=841+29=870 — 603=
267 ; 577 — 267=310+1 — 311 "original"
Now take 761+50=811 ; carry this through i, 77 (557),
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 283
and the remainder is 234, and the 234th word on the next
column (2, 77) is "characters." And so we have "strik-
ing and original characters."
Take again 761, add 50 and we have 811; carry this
through i, 75 (447), and we have 364 left; deduct 29
and we have 335; which (2, 75) is "full."
Now take 714 again. Carry it through 2, 76 (604),
and again we have 137 left; add 167 and we have 304;
carry this up from the bottom of ist section 2, 76 (457),
and it brings us to the I54th word "of."
Take 761 again; add 50 and we have 811; carry this
through ist section of 2, 76 (456), and we have 355 left,
and the 355th word is "very"
Then come in the words "striking and original char-
acters." And we have : "full of very original and strik-
ing characters." Surely an extraordinary collection of
words, if there is no cipher here! Together with the
words "extraordinarily" and "able" and "plays."
761+253=1014—603=41 1+50
=361 ( i, 77) (please) "plays"
And 411 — 100=311, again= "original"
And the Archbishop says, "I must confess these plays
are extraordinarily able, and full of very original and
striking characters."
And here, naming the characters, we find, close at
hand, by the same root numbers, 741 and 761,
741—604=137; 498—137=
361+1=362 (i, 76) "King"
761+50=811—448=363 (i, 76) "Richard"
See how closely this runs from the two adjoining
284 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI.AYS.
columns! From 741 through 2, 76 (604), up i, 76, conies
"King;" from 761 through and down i, 76 (448), comes
"Richard!3
And 50 words above "striking" (468, 2, 76) is the
word "Bardolf" — surely an original character.
And here we have a reference to another of the so-
called Shakespeare Plays — growing out of the same num-
bers, 741 and 761, which have just given us: "I must
confess these plays are extraordinarily able and full
of very original and striking characters/' and "King
Richard" etc.
Take 741, deduct 1 97^=544 f 50=594; deduct 448=
146; and 146 carried up 2, 75 (509), brings us to the
364th word,, "Measure"
Take the alternate number 761, deduct 50 and we have
711 ; carry it through 2, 75 (509), and we have 202; add
29 and we have 231, and the 23ist word, i, 76, is "for"
Take again 741. We deducted 197 to get the first
"Measure;" let us now add it and we have 838. We de-
ducted 448 to get the first "Measure;" let us now add it,
and we have 1286. Carry this through 2, 76 (603), and we
have 683 left; add 50 and we have 733. Take 279 (the
number of words above the bracket word, 280) and we
have 454 left ; deduct 29 and we have 425 ; and carry this
up 2, 77, and it brings us to the i87th word, which is
"Measure" And so we have "Measure for Measure"
Here it will be noted each word "Measure" comes from
741 and goes up the columns. The first is minus 197, the
second plus 197. The first is minus 448, the other is plus
448. The first goes backward and up through the first
column preceeding i, 76; and the other goes forward and
up through the first column succeeding i, 76, and de-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 285
parts from the same number, 280, which gave us "John"
and "wit."
If it is accident brings the words "Measure for
Measure" here, how comes it that they cohere so closely
with the same root numbers? I showed on page 541 of
the ''Great Cryptogram" that wherever the word "Meas-
ure" is found anywhere in the Plays, another "Measure"
is invariably found near at hand, in some cases, as here,
in the same act, and in adjoining scenes.
And it is referred to here more than once : 523 — 145—
192 brings us down 2, 75, to 364, "Measure ;" and 532+ 145
•f 192 through 2d section 2, 76, and i, 77, brings us down
2, 77, to 187=" Measure." Here is will be observed there
is an exact reversal — minus 145 becomes plus 145 ; minus
1 92 becomes plus 192.
And here too is the whole story of "Doctor Hayward,"
who wrote a history of King Henry IV,, and dedicated
it to the Earl of Elssex. The Earl claimed to be a
member of the royal family, and had high aspirations. The
suspicious and enraged Queen called Hayward before
her, knocked him down, and "sprung" upon his "stomach"
with her "full weight/' until he fainted ; and then she
imprisoned him and threatened to put him to the torture.
Bacon tells part of the story in his acknowledged works —
his "Apothegms."
And here we have the Doctor referred to :
up 505+193=698—145 (2, 76)
=553—509=44; 698—44=
454+1=455, (1,76) "Doctor"
down 505—193=312+192=554—
447=107, (i,75) "Ha"
286 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
up 505+1 93=698+29=727—
508=219; 498—2I9nzz279)-I
=280, (i,76) "word"
And here we have it, in reversed order :
down 505— 50=455, (1,76) "Doctor"
up 505— i93=3I2+29=34i ; 447
— 34-i=io6fi=io7, (i,75) "Ha"
down 505—50=455—167=288+
29=317, (1,76) "word"
And here we have the whole story of Shakspere's wild
life in his youth ; his killing of the deer ; and the break-
ing up of Sir Thomas Lucy's fish pond; and the fight
that followed with the game-keepers, and Shakspere's
flight to London.
In fact I have great heaps of notes worked out, enough
to make a book as large as ''The Great Cryptogram,"
with its thousand pages. But if the instances I have given
will not convert the incredulous, they would not believe
though one came from the grave.
And so I pass on to the last chapter of the Cipher-
story.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 287
CHAPTER XXVIII.
"Francis Bacon, Sir Nicholas Bacon's Son."
When the thought first came to me that Francis Bacon
—being a great constructor of subtle and abstruse ciphers
— might have placed one in the Shakespeare Plays, by
which he would at some future time reclaim his marvel-
lous works, I said to myself: "In that event he would,
in all probability, give his own name as the real author,
and also name Shakspere to deny his authorship. And as
he wrote these plays in his youth, before he had held any
high office in the state, he would naturally identify him-
self by referring to his illustrious father, Sir Nicholas
Bacon, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, under Elizabeth,
for twenty years."
And so I said to myself, I 'must find out if anywhere
in the text of the Plays the words : "Francis Bacon, Sir
Nicholas Bacon's Son," occur, in that or any other order.
And after diligent search I found all these words close
together, on three pages of the Folio of 1623, in Act 2, of
ist Henry IV.
And let us stop for a moment to consider the improba-
bility of this group of words being found, accidentally —
in small space — in the Shakespeare Plays, or anywhere
else, Four of these words, out of the six, are not ordinary
288 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
words of speech, but the names of persons. Why should
they occur in this play, supposed to have been written by
William Shakspere, who, on the surface of things, did
not appear to have had the slightest connection with the
Lord Keeper or his distinguished son ?
In the "Great Cryptogram," and in my lectures in Eng-
land and in this country, I challenged the advocates of
Shakspere's authorship to point out those words on three,
or thirty, or a hundred pages of any other book, prior or
subsequent to Shakspere's time, in which direct refer-
ence was not had to Francis Bacon and his father.
That challenge has never been answered. Mrs. C.
Stopes, of London, in her book, "The Bacon-Shakespeare
Question Answered/' has attempted to meet it by citing
" Gammer Gurtoris Needle" (1575), where the theft of a
"slip of bacon" is referred to ; and three other instances
where the same word "bacon" is employed. But this is
no response to my challenge. And it is nothing extra-
ordinary to find the word "bacon" used — it will be
found every day in the market reports of all the daily
newspapers in the United States. But in Gammer Gur-
ton's Needle, and the three other instances given, there is
no '''Francis" or "Nicholas" or "Bacon s" — there is noth-
ing out of which you can construct the sentence, "Francis
Bacon, Sir Nicholas Bacon's son," or any similar state-
ment. It is the coming together of all these words — these
unusual given names—in close proximity—that constitutes
the marvel, and proves the Cipher — especially, when, as I
show in "The Great Cryptogram" they were forced into
the text in most unnatural fashion. As, when we find the
word "Francis," for instance, dragged in by changing
the old proverbial expression, "Torn, Dick and Harry,"
TheFirft'PartofKjngHemytbeFourth.
syyou -, did King fttbrMm
Proehipcory Mother Mo
<iytheCr«w«? .
', He did, rov fetfe did heareji)
ffct. Nay then! cannot blame his
That with A him on the. imrcn Mounfaincs I
But (hall k be, that yoaihaf (et the Crowne
Vpon rh/^ead of th?s forgctfull man,
And forhfc fake, wore the-detefted^Jot
Of murtnerous fubornttion? Shall it be,
That yau, a world of curies vndergoe,
Being the Agents, orbafcjjcond moaoes,
The Co\ds, the Ladder, or U^Hangman rather ?
O pardon, if that I defcerfdjio low,
To fhew tbe^Ltne, and th< Predicament
Wherein ypn rangqjpder this fubtill King.
Shall it forffume, £e fpjfcen in thefc d»y cs,
Or fill vp Chronicles in tune to come.
That men of your Nobility and Power,
Incl gage, them both in an vniutt behalfe
( Al Bothjjgyou, God pardon it, haue done)
To put down? Rtcbardt th^t fwcetloucly Rofe,
And planfihis Thorne, this Canjcer 2?i
And Hull it in more fhame be turtnrr fpokcn,
Ijljat you are fool*d, tiifcarded, and fhooke oft
By him, for wliam thefe frames ye vnderwent ?
No : y« tnt* femes, wherein ycg^ipy ledeeme
Your baflifPd Honon, xnd rcRore your Jc^jcs
Into tbc good Thoughts of thcworld againe.
Reuenge the geftrjog anddifdain'd conterfipc
Of this proud King, *ho ftudics day and night
To anfwer til theDe^theowes^nfoyou,
Even with the bloody Payment ofyout death) ?
Thetefoiclfay . ^
Wuf. Peace Coufin . fay no more.
AndAow 1 will vnclijpe a SecretPooke«
id^ your quicke conceyi^jg Difcontenrt,
reade you Matter, dcepe and dangerous,
~ II of per ill and aducnturous Spinr,
AJ w ci're-\valke a Curre^if roaring loud
On the vnnedt'aft footing Qf a Spcare. j\>
or fwiir
Send danger from the^Eatt vmo the \Vjtt,0
^o^ionor crofTe it from (he North to Smith,
: The blood more ftirres
He
And let t^jm grapple : The blood mor
Torowze a Ly»n,then to (l»rt a^Jare.
_ Ntr .Imagination offooie great e
~ iues him beyogd the bounds ofPati
//»r. Byj^iuen, me thinkei it wer
tplucke brienTHjn^r from the pale-fac <
diue into'tne bonome oi (he deepe,
hereFidome-Hne cbuld neuer touch the
_ exploir,
the bounds ofPatience.
, me thinkei it were an eafie leap,
Toplucke bncttHjrjpr from the pale-fac d Moone,
Ordtue into'tne bottpme oi (he deepe, 3 o
WhereFidome-Kne cbuld neuer touch the ground,
And? lucke vp drowned Honor by the Lockes *
SorMthat'dotFtTedeet9eher thrnce, might wcare
Without Co.rhiall, alfher Dignities:
But oat vpon thiih^?e>1nc d Eellow(nip>
BV. Mc'appSbwidj a World of Figures here,
Bnt not the fotMof what he (hjpyld attend :
Good CoufittgtUetne audience for »-while,
And lift ro me.
Ha. ^ay you mercy.
Mr. Ttole fame Noble Stottei
That are your Prifoncrs,
. Bit. .llckcepcthem alL ,e
By heauen.'ne fhalliAthaue aSc«ofthem:V .
Ner »f a Scot would due hii Souic^rie" thai! not.' •
Ilckccpe them, by this Hand.
g tVtr. You ft art a way,
And lend no eare vote gy purpofct,
1 Thofe Pr ifoneriyou flwll kecpc.
Hot. Nay,Iwill ; trftt'i flat :
He faid, he would not ranfome Monmer;
Fotbad my torig\ie to fpcakcot'.*/en«»fr.
tl will finde him when he lyes afleepr,
in his care, He holla Mortimer.
, He hauc a Sfatlirfg^Ijall be taught to fpcake
Nothing but Mortimer, and giue it him,
To kccpe his anger ftill inrnotrofl.
Wir, Heare you Coufia : a^ord.
flat. All fludies heere I folenlSly dcfie,
1 to gall and pinch t\\\&nSi*gtrotket
fame Sword and Buckler Prince of Wiltr
^ I dtigkc his Father louei him not,
I would hau^povTjpn'd him wkbap ot of Ale,
wer. Farcweli Kinfinan : He tajketo you
When you jxgbetter temper d to attend .
Nar.\ Wj&y yhat a Wafpe-tongu'd & impatient fook
Art thou, toorcike into {hig Womans mood,
, Tying thine earcto no tongu c but ^une o wne
//pt.WBy look you, I am whipt
Netled,and flung with Pifmires.w
Of this vile Pol:ticlii>2^/Wr«^.
Intyf/^timc:—3^ ' '
A^laguevpon't.it
^iTwas.where the rn
'ye call the plate ?
Iouflerflure :
Duke bit Vncle kept,
TJHi* Vode Yorke,wherc Ifirfl bow'd my knee
Vnto this King of Smiles, this BttSm^rtokf-
VVhertyou and he clme backc fcorw RanenfpurgH,
AV, AtBarkleyCafile,
5^5 Hot. You fay true s
Why what a caudie dealt of cjgtefa ,
TBit-fawning Grey hound then did p/affei me.
kf when his infant FortunVcamcjpage,
Andgenile H«rrj Percy, and kinde CcJfio :
O.The Diuellrake fuch Couzeners.God forgmeme,
Good Vncletell y out^e, for 1 haue iloue,
W»r. NayJiFyou haue not, too't againe,
Wee'J flay your lejjjpcT*
Hot, IhauedotuinCaoth.
Wor. Jjyrn once more royour Scottish Prifooer*,
Dcliuer th^m vp w'thouu^eir ranfome flraight,
And make the Dax>gUi fomie your
For powrcs in Scotland ; Which for
^Which I (hall fend you wrkren.te d
Will eafily be granted you, ray Lord.
YA&MM in Sccfffand being thui im
being thui imp 1 y'd.
Shall fccretly into the bofome creep*
bf that fame noble Prelate, well bclou'd,
'TheArchbifnop.,
Hit. Of YSfltc/u'tnot?
War. Tcue^hobcares hard ,,
His Brothers dea t rTat 4r>w, ihe Lord itftlg*
1 fpeakenot this in ehimition, /^
As what I thinke mightb>, but what I know
Is ruminared.ploue^.and fet Hnwne, A
And ornely ftaycs aii t to behfld the face.
Of that occafion tfut (hall bnn^iton.
Htr. Iimcllir:^ A.
Vpon my life, it wufdo wond'rous well. $b
Nor. 'BcforetHeSjanie's a.foot, thou fliHltif ft flip,
Btt. Why.it cannot choofc but be aNobIt>)ot, '°
^ And
I CO
/So
ISC
Sco
id then chepowet ofScotland.aod of Vorke
» lovnc With Mort utter. Hi,
"§*v. And fwhcy (lull.
f/*r. I nf»«U it is exceedingly vdl ayni d.
0V. A"Q 'ci<r!o little rcifon yg« vsl'pecd,
lofaueourheads.byraifiiigcJjrHeads
For,b«re OIK feluerucuttj » Wecan.St)
Tbf King wi 11 alwayes th'mk* him-ifrour debt^
An& chinkr.wethinkc ourfcluci vnfitisfied,
ToHie hath found a jiroctop^y ?s home.
And fe? *Jrc»d)^lidw liedothjbejinne
Hit. He does.jje docs; wec'toc reuerigfd on him.
W&4 Coufih,farewell« No further go in tnisj
- ien/l ty *-ct Wj* ^ns'^ *T<1-^ Vour COUff«
\Vhcruime~is ripe, which WlbF fodainly:
Ue ftealc to GltMwcr and ree, Mortimer., ^o
Wtiere you,»nd D^/rf/,antrour powjei st once,
• -\ will [afmonir,iTvall happily roccte, A
bWe our fortunes in oor owne ftt ong armes,
Whicnnowi^elioldatrnuchvncertainty. ^o
AV* Fircvvell good Brother, we fhail thruic, I truft.
Hot. Vncle.adicu: Olct thehoures be ftiort,3o
Till ficlihjand Wowe),and grones,app\aud our fport.«.v«r
The Pir/l Tartefl^ing Heiarythe Fctertb.
lttf SecttndfU. Scena *Primaf
E*ttr 4 Curritr witk * LtMtrmt in tit h*nd,
fji .Cttr. Hcign-ho,an'i be noi foute by the day.IIe be
hang'd. Chttrlesvhote i? oucr the new Chimney, and yec
o&horfenotpackt. WhatOftlet?
^. Anon.anon. us
«r. Ipr^JjeeTo^beare COM Saddle, putt few
Flockes in yic point : the poore lade is vt rune in che wi.
tbFallftflc
inter mother Carrier. j&
l.Cxr. < Peafe and Bcanesage-as danke here as a Dog,
and this it the next way to glutpoore lades th^ Bones:
This houfe is turned vpfide downe fincc 'Rjbin the Oftler
ed> &Q
\. Cur. Pbore fcllowyieuer ioy'd fincc the price of oats
iofe.it was the deathof him. jfb
2. Cur. I thinkctWs is the moftvU^»noushoufc in al
London rode for Fleas: lam ftung like aTench: i ^A
• ,^V. Like a Tench? Ther^e is ne'rc a KingioChri-
jlfndome.could be better bit.then I haucbecnc ihTftlhe
fiiftCocltc. 4^6
*.C«r. Why, you will allow vsne'-jp a! lourden, and
then weleake in your Chimney : ancfyonrChamber-lyc
bteed* Fleas like a Loach. tc A
I ,C<«r. What Oftlcr.'comc away .and tc hangd.-come
eway, w^
a.C4r. TluueaGarggonofBs<:on,iand tworaiesof
Ginger,to be deliuered as farreasCh;tring<.£co/re.
\.:Car. TheTurkiesfruny P«nnierar&4iti:e flamed.
Wrrar. Oftler? A plague on thee.haftthojirijf&saii eye in
thy head ? Ctn'ft not heaj^? And f were riSl as good a
deed as drinluL to break tpcpate oftheYJ am a very Vil-
hine. Come and be hangVl.hift no faith in the« ? tjiy
>/. Good-morrow Carriers. What1* a cloekrf
''t^ihinkeicbecwoaclocke. A
>*J. I pr?thec lend me thy LarubouK t» fee my Gel«
Av 21. . -%- '.
ding in the (lable. ...
i .CAT. N.y foft I pnv yt, 1 know * trick worth cwo
ofthat. A
<?«/. Tpretheelendmetbine.
».C-r. Lwbcn.rtnrVteill' Lendmeeihy Lanthorne
(quoth-a) marry lie fee thee hang'd fitft.
C«*. Sii4« Carrier; What time tft you
to London? A
i mean to come
hauc great charge. 76*1^
£xt**t
Cad.
/ Cham. At hand quoth Pick-p
6W. THrt cuen ai faire,as at HK3 qu^tfhe Gham-
herlaine : For thou varieft no more from ptckhTg'of Pur-
ies, then gluing direction, doth froro laboufthg . Thou
lay ft the plot, how. * o
A £b«m. Good morrow Mafter G*dt- Hill, it holds cur-
rant that I told y,ou yeftemight There's a Franklin in tW
vol^c of Kent, hath brought three hundred Markea wrtN
hfto i»Gold:I heardnirntell it looncojhis compan laft
night at Supper; a kinde of Auditor! one that hat
dance ofchatge too (God knowVs what) they tr e
ready, and t J] for Egges and Butter. They wi
prefently.
Gad. Sir ra, if they meete not with S.Nicholas Clark*,
He giue thee this necke. 3~o A
(,'kiim. No, Jlc/n^>ne of it : I pry thee la cp that for the
Hangman for 1 knowtho<iVo!f(bJpftS.Nuhala« »i«q«
ly as a manof falfti6od may. 3o
Gat. WJaiialkeftthou to me of the Hangman? If I
hang, llcmakeafatpayrcffGallo'mcs. For/Sf I hang.
'
old Sir I oh* hangs with
Starueling. Tut, there
not of, the which (for fport
Pro felTion ibme grjce ; that would (if matter* {hould bee
look'd into} fo^theifo wne Credit fake, make all Whole
dvuihftbFoot-land^l^kfrSf no Long-ftarTc
d thou know'ft hec'i no
er Troiajjs^hat
e) are content to doc the
ntent
atter*
fix-penny RrikerSjiioncof thefc-ma?i Muftachio-purple
hu'd'Maltwormes, but wich Nobility, andTranquihtie;
Bourgomafters, and^rcacOnrycrs, luchas can holde in,
fuch as will ft uke fooiier tJacnTpcakc ; and fpeake ft/one
then drinke. and drjn'<e fcwier then pray : andyet I lye,
for they pray continually j^o their Saint the Ccmmon-
wealth ; or rather^ not to puy to her, but prey on henfor
they ride vp fi^Jowne on tict.and make hir their Boots.
C^«»».'\Vhat,theConimonweaIth theiiBootesi Will
{Lc hold out witcnpfoule way? u,o
C»d. ShewiIK(Kc\wiIl;luRicehathjaguor'dher. We
(rcale as in a Caftlc,cockfure: vvehaue thercceit
fccde,wewalke5nuilible. |tf ' A
Ck»m. Nay, I thinkcrathe^yAU are more beholding
to the Night, then to the Fchifeed, for your walking in-
uifible. A
|« Cad. Gioeroi thy hand.
1 hou fajdt, haue a Chare in our purpofe,
ns I am a true man, o^
Ckfa. Nay, rather let nee haue -c, as you ire i falfe
TheeFe. fo A
OW. Go e too : Sana ua common name to all men,
Bid the Oftler bring ^Ve Gfeuhnj out of the ftable. Fare-
well.yc cmddy Knaue^ u. •* £ Exeua.
Seau
ICC
The FirjWan of KjigHerrry the Fourth.
Pointi. Come Qielter.lhcitcr. I hauc remoUed Fdjtaf/
Horfe,and r£ft<*s like a guffl d Vcluet.
/> rm, Sta&Tclofe. - * 7
F-i/. PoiHU)PoJnii,3od be hangM P«w A .30
JWv. Pcaceyc fat-Bglney'd Rafcall, whac a brawlinc
doftthoukeep?. V
¥«l. What tthut. Mfl)
^<yPr/w. H-w walk'd vpto the top of the bill.Ile go feck
him. *•' /<*
\T*. _ I ana act ;nft to-ib in thatThecte1 companjgthat
Rafc»ll hath tenooil c»-" 17 Horfe.snd tied him I know not
where. Ifl trauell but fovre foot bv^efquire fAh« a
footc, I (hall breaker winde. 'Well;! doubt not but
to dye a fairrdeathjot all this, if I fHpt hanging for kil-
ling that Rogue, IfiltuefijifwOfne his company hourely
any dime tlih two and tfc ataty yeare,8f yet Tantbcwi tcb.t
nft company. If iht Rafcall hauc nor glvjeg
stomakenifc.loOehim^lebchat)d;tteoum
Phigae^poayouboth
robtfoote further.- And '
PW.
ta^^ood ?3ecdeas (o
urne Triie-rbah, and jtqlcauc thelellogue*, I
ira«heverieft Varlet that cuet chewid. with a Tooth.
tros one to another. ^o Ikejirbiftlt.
Whew : a plague light tpon yotolUGiuemy Horicyou
liltn:e»i?
Rogues : giue me rnv Her fc;»nd be
PHa. Peace ycmgnttet
c'ofe to the ground4and lift
Trauellert. 50 ^
ft!. Haae^ou »y tcauers to lift roc vp »g*Jn being
do^ge Mlc not beare ntme owne fle(h fo far afoot again,
Tor M. the cofrVt 5n thy Fathers Exchequer. What a plague
rnealte ye to colt me thus ? ^
^ Pf/w.Thou ly'ft.thou art not colc^Ljhou art vncoited,
Fait I prethee good Prince //<f/,hclp me to my horfc,
good Kings Tonne. ^ A,
Trin. Out you Ro^e,^!! I be yonr Oilier ?
Fit. Go hsng thy feifc in thinepwne heire-apparanz*
Garters : If I be tar.e Ijc pwh fgr this : and J hsue not
Balladi made on all. Jma fung to mthy tunes, let j£up of
Saekc Be my poyfon : wlhtn a left is fo forward, & a foote
>lAteit. ^
/O
Sfarrt!,
SoIdoagainRmywilU
/««». O 'tii out letter. I knowhur
Banbtfe, what ne wes ?
34f. Ca(Vye,cafeye;onwith
many of tMe Kr a% 3 camming dotvne
to the Kings
vj?
Sir tefm Paunch
/£> Pm. You foure (hall front them in tht narrow! ane
fad and !//»Ul walke lower; if thcyfcap« ftora'youj «n
/?ounterjthea they light ar^vs.
7>rt». But how many DC of them ?
G<J^. Some eight or
Fal. .Will they not r
Pr'tn, What.a
Fal. Inde
but yet no C
Pr«w. Wecl leanest to the proofc
f f/w. Sirra lacke, thy lanrfc Aands behtnde the hedg'
when thon need "ft him) there thou fhalt fin Jc him. Fuc«
well,andftandf8fl.,
T*l. Nowca^notTftri
Prta. Ned, wQreare our difguifc* t
Poia. Hecrc h'aYd by : Stand ciofc
Fal. Now'my Mafte«,happy man behisdolc, fay I
Tra. Come Neiuhbot: the boy (hall leadeour Horfei
dowhe the hill : WeVl walkc a-foot a wiiile
Stay,
7V4.
Fal. Strilr down with them, cut t^ villains throatt,
a whorfon Caterpjll us :TJacon-fed Knau<s, they tiate
oyouth ; Jpwnc with them.fleece tUem, ^ >.•-"•
are vndonc^both we aad ours for euer —
gorbcllicd knaues,arcyou vndone r NTn
would your ftorewcreliecrt. On Bf
ycknauc$?Yongmenn»uft Iiuc, yotf
reye . Wee'l iurcve ifaith. X/fl -2
prince aiidToinu.
/'r/W.'ThcThecuei hau^bound the True-men » Now
could thouand Irob theThec^.aix] gomer ily to Looi
don, u would be argumcntfbT aVYceke, Laughter foil
Moneth,anda good tell for
Statfd cloie^l hearc them eommirig.
fat er Thtatet agafne.
my Maflers, let »s n^.are.and then tobo<B>
the Prince and Poyncs bee not two tt*
there's no equity ftirr'mg. There's no a»c"9
Poynes>than in a wiidc Du«k t ,
money
p they *rt$)erin£fl}t Prince 4»rf Poy nes/Sf «p«i» f fe*Ut
\jjtaniuf the boatj ttshitd tkevt.
ith much eifc. Now merrily to Jtefes o^ »
tec
TneTbeeu£jare fcartred,and pofleft with fear fo
ly, that diey dar'e not meet each other : each t»ke» his f»«
low for M OfWcr. Away good HtA, falftdffe fwcitcs to
deatbv^id ££ras the Ica^c earth as he walkti ilong:«ert
pot forlaughing'jl ftoald pttt/hlra,
the Rogue ^oat'<L
>:,- 3?,'.tJ-
'^" :
3V«ardr, thcic'*
chill, tr| jj'oin^
lie you rogu^Vvi g^gig to the Klngt Tti? > ... ,
«?/r<t Ther<rttnonghe[9mak«r« afl; |
7*^ To he hangd. ^
•,wr£M /«"«*• »r*r«»fr«ralrt
Kc
J~^^/
-fc could be contented .• Why is he not^thcnftftrcrpcit of
he lout he be ares our houfe^ He (hewes in cmY,hc loucs
lisowne Barne better then rTe louesour houfe. Let me
ce »bmo more. • Tfc tffi'frj on vixtyalee
f/hy thai't certaine •-T'ls Hangeroufto take a Coidc, to
fl^epe,todrinkc: but t/eTtyou(my L^u} foolc) ^it of
hisNettle^Dingerj wr'piuckeihit Flower, Safety. Tbr
100
$00
>. 6-
yrfofejo* vndertdke H J**£eroia, the Frifrdrjoithffe <M«
nedvncert4inet the ftine it feffe vaferted^nd ^ifK wWe
Hot too (ght, . fir the taitnteyoiie fffezfyt OH Ofptfnion*
jay youlo,(ay you fo : I W^gto you agauie, you are a
hallow cowardly Hmde.anjyoii lye., What a.lackc-
jhis? I pro'tefl/miE plot is as good a plot as cucr
r Friend true a^idconflant:. AgoodPlotic,
S.and full of expectation: An excellent plot^
vci y good rtieiitj^ What a Froity-fpit; Jed rogue is this?
i/Vhy, my Loro* QfYirkc commends the plot , and the
I coutfe oftlfe action; By this hand.if 1 were now
Rafcall.Icoifldbraine him with his Ladies Fau.
[i tKeVe not my Father, my Vnckle, and my Selfc, Lord
tdm*nd Afortimertmy Lord of Torkt,ynA. Otftn (Ucgdoiirt
\s there not bcfidcs, the btwgliut Hauc I not all tncir let-
its, to mcete me in Armcs by thaflii^trtjnthc next Mo-
neth? and ore they not tome ofUjicm fet forward already?
hat a Pagan Raltall i^his ? AnThridflf .1 Hai you fliall
now in ve/v fincerity of FeaT'e and Cold heart; -will-he
to the Kinged lay opeiiall our proceedings; O,I eould_
djuide'Mr lelfc, and go to buffets-, for mouiug fucha diTh
«f$kimo Milk with fo honourable an A^ifiri. Hang hirn^
let him tell the King we arc prepared. I vvjllfetiomaMs
JO
How now Kaie,I tnufl leaue ^(oi^within thefc two hours,
If. O.my good Lord^hy are you thus alouc /
Fot wha«. offence haue J this fortnight bin
Abanifli'd woman from m^tfmrrics bed ?
\J\] me (fwcet Lord) what is't that uk« from thee
fny ftomacke,pl«fiire,an<k^y golden flccpc?
Why.doft ihou bend thinc'eyes vpot\ the earth ?
And ftart fo often whcu th6u fujll >I<V1C.? •
Why haft thou lofl the fiefh bloo\l in tny cheektt >'
And glucn my Treafurcs and ray rightVof th^e,
Tothickc-ey 'd oiufinp, and curft. meUnrholly t
In my faint-flumbers, I*by clicchaue watcht,
And heard thcemurm6>e«lc^l Iron Warrc»i
tearrae* ofmanagetothybounding sfced,
jrage to rhe field..: And chouhaft ttik'd^
ie«,and Retirett f rcnches.Tent st
izadoes. Frontiers .Parapet tf
OfBafiliske$,.of Canon, Culu«in,-^.o
OTPrjfoners ranfomc, and of Souldieis flafnej
Al^i all the current of a hcaddy figl«/V
vyitluo thec hath be cne fo at JVarre,
yfhfo beftirr'd thee in thy ll'epe,
Qt fv^gite hath nood vpon thy Brow,
Like bubbles ; jna laterdiflutbcd Streame • ^_0
And in thy face ftrange motions bauc appe»t!(}.
5jy ch as we fee when men rcftraine their breath
fopie greatlo'dtinc halt. Owhat portcnraarc rhefc?
nehu^icbulincflchachmy Lord in hand,
Aftil I rnjjlt know it^tfc hclfaucime nor.
Htt* IWhat ho ; Is CiHitms with the Packer gone ?
Str<. HCK my Lor^.aifhoure agone. . 3o
Ser. OnehorfejnyXord^c broughceueanow.
Hot. WhatHoucPARoancjaeropoire.isitnot.
Ser. TtlsmyLo^d, ^o
Hot. tnatKoane (hall be my Throne. Well. J.wjfl
backe him ftraight, ^M«cr,bid Bmltr. lead lum^orp
into the Parke.
Z-<*. But heargjpu.my Loro*.
Het, What fajr'ft tliou my Lady ?
r. Whaysitcarrlesyouaway?
Hot. \V ny,rriy horfe(my Loue^rny ""IUJ.Q
La. Ou^you mad-headed ^gc, a Wea£cjI'.ha.truiOf
fuch a dealt of Spleene, as y ou^e.tofti with, th foota lie
know your bufinelTe //<»a, thaWE wjlJ. I f'carc my Bro-
chct Mortimer doth itirre about his Title, and hath lent
.for you to line his entcrpr^te? Butifyou g
Hut . So farre a foot; Lfliall be.weary,
La Comr.comc.y oo Piraqu ho, anfwcr i
»nto this quettton that I (haU.ajke* Ju
thy little finger Harrjt\f thou wilt not.tel
Hot. Avvay.a%»y
T carrnot for thee Kate:. Ms iVna world
To, p(ay with Mammets.and to rht.with If;
We muft hauc bloodie Nofcs.and crack'd <
A nd plflc them currant too. . Gods oic,my horfe .
Wha^Vv'ft tnou^i«?whatvtoid'ftthouhaue wiihmc? ^oo
lia^ Do y ejjbYloue me? Do ye not Indeed ?,
Well, doiio?&feh. For (nice you loue me nor,
I will not loue my felfc. Do you not loue me ?
Nay,tclftnc if thou fpcak^ft in ie(Korno«
Hot. Cdmc, wilt thou fee me-ndc?
And when I am a horfebatkevl will twe»rc.
I loue thee infinitely. But heanCe you K*tt,
I muft 11 or ^auc you hcucctor t li,quc Hionmc,
Whethcffgo : nor rea'fon whereabout
Wheth'cr Thiufl, I muft: tffa to conclude, ~
This Eucmng muft I leau£r.hce,gcntjc KXt.
Iknowyouwifc.but yccnofurthetwifc ^
Then Hanjfercies wife. Coriftanc jou are,
Buf\etav»O£run:andfotfecrccic,r'' >
No LadycIofeV For! will beleeur *•
T npu wilt noc vtter what thouob'ft not know,
ArftRa firrc wjltl rruft thee.geniU Kate,, a
'la. How^Farre?
,0 //"'-Not anlnch further. .Butharic you Kate/,
' WhitherT go, thither (hall you go too j
TO day wnl I fee f°$t{)< ro morrow you*
Set na Quarts
Entrr Prince andBp'mttt ,
Pnn. jV^.prcthcc come ou c'oFUm fat ropmc;8i lend
me thy hand to Ituch a little. ^ ef<yQ
Poinei. Where%ftbene/f^?
Trim With three or foure Logg«-he?dV<amongft 3,
or fourefcorfrHogtheads. .1 hauc founded the verie bafc
firing of humility, Sirra,Iam fworn brotherto a leafti of
Drawers. and can call thjgi by their naftes.as T«l» »D'f^f>
and Francis- Thcy-take "uaucadv vpontheir.confidencc,
that though I bebut PrlStc of Wales, yecl.am jh.e Kii
of Gimc^lcrtellingrn: flatly I am no proud lack hkc Ft
yy^jbut a Corinthian ji lad of mettle.- ~a good boy, a
when i5rn King of EngI ira I (hall commanqw toe go
LaddesmEaft-chcape. ihcyc«irdrinking^kcpe,,d
•ing Scatter; and when you breath in your watering, theij
— ^ — __u a?
(00
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 289
into "Tom, Dick and Francis;" and the travelers are
called "Bacons" by Falstaff as he robs them; and St.
Nicholas is deprived of his real characteristics and made
the patron saint of thieves, which he was not — so as to
get the word Nicholas into the text twice. And when
to all these extraordinary facts we add the proofs, here
given, that these unusual words hold a direct arithmetical
relation to the three pages on which they occur, and to the
framing of the play into scenes and fragments of scenes,
caused by the stage directions, we present an array of
proofs that there is a cipher in this play, which cannot
be controverted even by the wildest or most devout wor-
shippers of the fetish of Stratford.
If the reader will number the words from the top of
col. i, p. 53 downward, he will find that the 37ist word is
the word "Bacon." The word "Bacon" occurs but four
times in all the Shakespeare Plays, and in three of these
instances it is found on the two consecutive pages, 53 and
54, to which I have referred. To make the word "Bacon"
the 37 ist word on that column, eight different adjustments
of the text were required. The two words "In faith" had
to be printed as one word (the igtti. on the column) ; the
word "he" had to be left out of the sentence, "Poor fellow,
(he) never joyed," etc. Take these eight self-evident
manuipulation of the text into consideration and there is,
by "the doctrine of probabilities," not one chance out of
billions that the word Bacon would by accident, corres-
pond precisely with the number of the page (53) multi-
plied by the number of italic words (7) on the first column
of that page.
Now take again that cipher number 371, and instead of
commencing to count at the top of col. I, page 53, let us
19
290
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
begin at the top .of the first column of the next page, 54.
At the top of that page there is a subdivision contain-
ing 17 words. Let us count through this subdivision, and
we have 354 words left (371 — 17=354) ; now carry this
to the beginning of the next scene (Scaena Tertia of the
Folio), at the end of same page, and carry it through
the 24 words of the fragment beginning that scene, on
that column, and then forward to the next column, not to
the top of the column, but to the top of the fragment of
the same caused by the stage direction "Enter his Lady ;"
count down to the bottom of the column and advance up
the next column and the number,, 354 brings us to the
word "Francis," the 447th word on column two of page
55. This gives us the two words "Francis Bacon/' each
is the 37ist word, alternately going up and down the
column — "Francis" being counted up the column, and
"Bacon" being counted down the column. "Bacon" comes
from the beginning of scene one of Act II, and "Francis"
from the beginning of scene three of Act II; and each
is the 37 ist word.
Consider these figures :
371—189 (up) =182
255— (54— 2)
/
371 — 269 (down) =102
447— (55— 2)
Francis
371—189 (up) =182
371— (53— i)
Bacon
371 — 269 (down) =102
337— (54— i)
Son
371—189 (up) =182
298— (53— 2)
of
371 — 269 (down) =102
45— (54— 2)
Sir
371—189 (up) =182
214— (53— 2)
Nicholas
371 — 269 (down) =102
159— (54— 2)
Bacon
But for the rest of the article showing how the words
Francis — Bacon — Sir — Nicholas — Bacon's — son all come
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 291
out in response to the numbers 371 and 648, I refer the
curious reader to the pages of the December, 1890, num-
br of the North- American Revieiv. It is not necessary to
repeat them here.
I have shown that if we take that root number, 371,
and count down col. i, of page 53, it brings us to the
word "Bacon." But the first column of the next page, 54,
has twelve italic words on it, just as the first column of
Pa§'e 53 has seven italic words. And just as 53x7 gives
us the root-number, 371 ; so 54x12 gives us another root-
number, 648 Now if we count down i, 53, and it gives
us, as the 37ist word, "Bacon" let us keep on counting,
until we have counted 648 words, and the 648th word is
the i89th word, 2, 53, which is "Nicholas.""
This is certainly remarkable; 371 gives us "Bacon" and
648, counting in precisely the same way, gives us the first
name of Francis Bacon's father — "Nicholas"
In the particular cipher derived from page 74, given in
the foregoing pages, we took no account of the bracketed
and hyphenated words — omitting to count the bracketed
words and counting the hyphenated words as one each.
In the cipher derived from page 75 multiplied by 12 (the
number of italic words on col. i, p. 74) =900, the bracket-
ed and hyphenated words are used, as we showed on page
141 ante. And in the cipher we are now engaged on there
are, as a rule, few hyphenated words and still fewer
bracketed words, but they are all used.
We find that 648 words from the top of column one,
page 53> gave us "Nicholas." Let us proceed to the top
of the next page, 54; carry 648 through column one (455
words), and we have 193 left; but there are five hyphen-
ated words on that column, i, 54; deduct 5 and we have
292 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
188 left; carry this up the next column (2,54) from the
38^th, or bottom word, and it brings us to the I97th
. word, but as we have passed over the 222d word, (2, 54) ;
"true-men," if we count these as two words, then the
i88th word brings us to the i 98th word, which is "Ba-
cons." And so we have "Nicholas" (down) "Bacons'
(up). "Nicholas" from the top of i, 53, and "Bacons"
from the top of 1,54!!
"Bacons" is a forced and unnatural word. Falstaf
might reasonably have called the travelers "pigs," or
"hogs ;" but he would scarcely have designated them by
the name of a piece of smoked meat!
Now as the word "Nicholas" came from i, 53, and
went down the column, the next word "son" must also
start from page 53, and go down the column. There is
a break on i, 54, caused by the stage direction: "They
whistle," at the 235th word. Deduct 235 from 648 and
we have 413 le-ft. Carry this to 2, 53, and deduct the first
fragment there 76, and we have 337 left; and the 337th
word, on 1,54, is "sonne" And so we have "Nicholas
Bacon's sonne"
Let us now take 648 — 52 (i, 53) =596; carry this
through 2, 54, above the ist word of beginning of scene
three (2, 54), =359 words +3 hyphenated words, =362 ;
596 — 362=234 ; and 234 carried up 2, 53, brings us to the
246th word : — "Sir"
And so we have:
up 648—53, end scene 2, (2, 54)
=246, (2,53) "Sir"
down 648— 459, 1,53 beg. sc. i,
Act 2, =189, (2, 53) "Nicholas"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 293
up 648—455, 1,54 beg. sc. 2,
Act 2, (2, 54) "Bacon's"
down 648—235=413—76 (2, 53)
=337, (1,54) "sonne."
If on the other hand we again take 648, and carry it
through column one of page 55, containing, +5 hyphenat-
ed words, 585 words. Deduct this from 648 and we have
63 left. Carry this down from the beginning of scene
four (2, 55), counting in one hyphenated word, "logger-
heads," as two words, and the 63d word is : — "Francis."
Take again 648; add to it the fragment of 17 words at
the top of i, 54, and we have 667; carry this through col.
2, of p. 53 (479 words), and we have 188 left; carry this
UP l> 53 (458) and it brings us to the 37ist word "Bacon"
This is the same word "Bacon" we reached by going down
the column. And so it responds to 371 going down the
column, and to 648 going up the column. And so we have
down 648, i, 55, "Francis"
up 648+17, 2, 54, "Bacon"
Observe the similarity of this cipher with that growing
out of page 74. In each the words move alternately up
and down the columns. In each the fragments of the
text are alternately added to and subtracted from the root-
number.
Thus 371 is modified by adding to it the number of
words, 52, found in the first subdivision of scene one of
act two, page 53 of "Histories." That is to say between
the, word "Heigh-ho" (ipoth word) 1,53, which begins
that scene, to the break caused by the stage direction,
294 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
"Enter another carrier," there are just 52 words; and
here I would call the reader's attention to the fact that
there is no necessity for that stage direction, except that
which arises from the exigencies of the cipher. The two
carriers could just as well have entered together, in the
beginning of the scene. In fact, the first carrier has to
converse with an "ostler," of whose entry there is no rec-
ord, and who disappears' from the scene after the appear-
ance of the second carrier.
Rut if we take that root number, 371, and deduct and
add that number, 52, we have two root, numbers which
alternately move up and down the next column. Thus :
371— $2= 319.
371+52= 423.
The reader will observe the ingenuity of the cipher so
constructed — the consecutive words of the cipher story,
are not only separated by the fact that one goes up and
the other down the column, but they are further divided
by the difference between 52+52 or 104 (423 — 319=
104). But lest even this should not be safeguard enough,
the cryptogramist does not make 319 "and 423 move al-
ternately up and down the column, with the two con-
secutive words standing as 319 and 423, counting from
top and bottom, but he still farther conceals his work by
making the numbers start from different breaks in the
column, caused by the stage directions. Let me give an
example :
Suppose the cipher story to have exhausted the possi-
bilities of column one of page 53, and to have passed for-
ward to the next column, column two of page 52.
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 295
Let us take again those two numbers, 371 — 52=319
and 371+52=423 and apply them to that column (2, 52).
If we count down the spoken words of the column, we
will find that the 3i9th word is the word "deliver." Now
take the alternate number, 423, and commence to count
from and including that word "Heigh-ho," the first word
of scene one, Act 2, p. 53 (190), and counting upwards,
and then going up the preceding column (2, 52), and we
find that the 423d word is the word "unto." But there are
on that page three hyphenated words, so placed that we
have to pass over two of them to reach the words "deliver
unto" I counted them, ("waspe-tongued" and "grey-
hound") in going down the column, to reach the word
"deliver" and "a- foot" and "grey-hound,," going up the
column- to reach "unto" as one word each; but suppose
we count them as two words each, then the 3i9th word is
the word "Scottish" and the 423d word is the word
"king" Thus we have two sequences — "deliver unto"
and "Scottish king" By the law of probabilities there is
only one chance out of twenty billions that these four
words should each be the 371 st word, and cohere so ex-
actly as they do.
I said above, that to obtain the 423d words, going up
the column, to wit : "unto" and "king" we should com-
mence to count from the ipoth word, "Heigh-ho," of
column one, page 53. I did this to make the statement of
the rule simpler. The fact is that 190 is used as a modi-
fier, and as I have shown, is not only deducted from but
added to the root-number. Deducted from 423 it gave
us 233, and added to 423 it gives us 613 (423+190=613) ;
while the same modifier, 190, added to the alternate num-
ber gives us 319+190=509; and subtracted from it gives
296 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
us : 129. Bearing these figures in mind, let us experi-
ment a little farther.
The root-numbep, 371 minus 52, the first paragraph of
scene one, leaves us 319. Go down that first column of
page 53 and the 3i9th word (counting "Heigh-ho" as one
word) is the word "king." Take now the alternate num-
ber, 423 (371+52=423), and deduct the modifier, 190, and
we have 233 left ; now as the last word went down the col-
umn, let us carry this up the same column, and, counting
the six hyphenated words separately, as one word each,
it brings the word "the" — "the king"
But as we obtained 319 by deducting the 52 from 371,
let us deduct it once more ; and we have 267 left, (371 — 52
^=319 — 52^=3267). We have used the modifier, 190, the
number of words from the top of scene two (col. I, p. 53),
inclusive, upwards to top of column ; but from the end of
scene one, on same column, downwards, to the bottom of
the column, there are 269 words, plus four hyphenated
words, or 273 in all. We will find these alternate num-
bers, 190 and 269 (+4=273) play a very important part
in working out this part of the Cipher story. Let us now
add 269 to 267 (just as to obtain the last word we deduct-
ed 190 from 423) and we have 536 (319-52=267+269=
536) ; now we carry this number through the same col-
umn one, of page 53, containing 458 words, the hyphenat-
ed words being counted as one word each and we have,
as a remainder, 78 (536-458=78) ; as the last word,
"the" was obtained by going up the column, we must car-
ry this word down the same column, and we do so and
find that the 78th word is the word "see" And so by a
coherent rule, growing out of and applied strictly to the
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 297
•
same column (i of 53) we have the words "see the king''
thus :
down 371 — 52=319 — 52=267
+269=536—458=78 (i, 53) "see"
up 371+52=423— 190=233 ;
458— 233=225— 6+3*1=
229 (i, 53) "the"
down 371—52=319 (i, 53) "king"
>
Observe how strictly the rule works. The first para-
graph, 52 words, is alternately deducted from and added
to the root-number 371 ; the count moves alternately up
and down the column and the first word "see" is obtained
by counting downwards from the end of scene one, and
the next word "the" is obtained by counting upwards
from the beginning of scene two, and the third word
"king" is obtained by counting downwards from the top
of the column !
But it will be noted that when we carried 233 (423 —
190=233) up column one, we counted in all the six
hyphenated words as one word each. If we had not done
this the 233d word up the column would have been the
word "few." "Few" what ? Let us see :
We obtained "few" by deducting 190 from 423 and
going up the column. We must get the next word by
adding the alternate number, 269, to the alternate of 423,
that is 319 (371 plus 52=423; 371 minus 52=319, and
going down the column). We have 3 19f 269=588. Now
let us begin at the top of the next preceding column (2
of 52) and we find there is on that column 461 words,
plus 3 hyphenated words, or 464 in all, and carrying
298 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
•
588 through that column we have 124 left (588 — 464=
124), and the I2zjth word is "days"=:"few days."
When we carried 319 down column one of page 53, we
came, I showed to the word "king" counting the com-
pound word "Heigh-ho" as one word ; but if we counted
that as two words the 3iQth word is the word "a." And
so wre have again "a few days" thus :
down 371 — 52=319 — i hyphen-
ated word=3i8 (i, 53) ((a"
up 371,1-52=423—190=233 ;
458—233=225+1=226 t ( i, 53) "few"
down 371— 52=3 i9f 269=588
—464, Col. i, 52=124 (i, 53) "days"
When we obtained the word "see" ("see the king"},
"see" the 78th word, it will be remembered that we first
deducted 52 from 319 (319 — 52=267) ; and then added
269 to the remainder (267+269=536), and carried it
through column one p. 53, and the remainder 78, gave us
the word "see" But it may be asked, why was not the
269 added to the 319 before we deducted the 52? Let
us try that. If we add 269 to 319 we have 588 — the same
number which, as we have just seen when carried through
column 2 of page 52 gave us the word "days." Let us
carry it through the column we have been working on,
i of 53, containing 458 words ; 458 from 588 leaves 130,
and this carried down the same column gives us the
word "he," the abbreviated form of the word "lord,"-
"Glendower and loe Mortimer;" it is printed "he" be-
and because as "loe" 'it becomes, in another part of the
and because as "he" it becomes, in another part of the
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 299
cipher story, the last syllable of the name of Marlow
(More-loe).
What does the word "lord" have to do with this
sentence we are working out?
Remember it grew out of 371 minus $2, and it went
down the column — the next word must grow out of 371
plus $2 and must go up the column.
We saw that "see' was obtained by deducting 52 from
319; let us now add 52 to 423, the alternate number; we
have 475. If we turn to the next column, 2 of 53 (for
we cannot keep forever on the same column — we soon
exhaust its possibilities), \ve will see that it is divided
into two parts by the stage direction, "Enter Chamber-
laine" From the end of the first fragment to the bot-
tom of the column there are 403 words, not counting in
the bracketed words and counting the double words as
one word each ; now deduct 403 from 475 and we have
72 left: carry 72 up the same column, one of p. 53, and
it brings us to the word "my"- -"my lord!' And so we
have :
down 371—52=319—52=267
+269=536—458=78 (i, 53) "see"
up 371+52=423+52=475—
403=72 ; 458—72=386+
1=387 (i, 53) W
down 371—52=319+269=588
-458=130 (i, 53) "lord"
up 37I+52=423— 19°=233 ;
458—233=225+1=226
+311=229 "the"
down 371—52=319 (i, 53) "king"
300 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We see this form of expression in 2d Henry VI. V.
I, "happiness to my lord the king;" and in Titus Audron.,
IT, 4. "where is my lord, the king?"
Let us take the same 423 and again add 190 and we
have 613 ; now commence at the bottom of the next
column and carry count upwards, counting the ten hy-
phenated or double words as two words each, and go
up to the preceding column and the 6i3th word is the
word "will" the 336th word of column one, page 53.
And here I would call attention to the minute ac-
curacy of the work. The reader will note that the last
word of col. I, 53, is "gelding," the "gel" being at the bot-
tom of col. i, and the "ding" at the top of the next col-
umn. Now neither "gel" nor "ding" is a word, and
hence neither is counted where the contents of either
column act as a modifier, thus there are 458 words, (less
the hyphens,) on col. I, p. 53, and 479 on col. 2, p. 53.
But when the count progresses from one column to the
other then the "gel" is united to the "ding" and becomes
a word :- "gelding." The word "Nicholas" is the i89th
word on 2, 53, and there are 458 words on I, 53, and these
made 647, but as we have proceeded through col. i, and
down col. 2, we have necessarily joined "gel" and "ding."
together, and that makes one word, gelding, and thus
"Nicholas" becomes the 648th word. And in the same
way I would note that the clue-word is only counted as
one of the words of a column where it is one of the spoken
words of the text, not where it is a stage direction or the
name of one of the characters. Thus "and" at the bottom
of 2, 52, is counted, but "Exeunt," and "scena" at the close
of 2, 53, are not counted. It is upon these delicate dis-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 301
criminations, only discovered by great labor, that the cor-
rect working of the cipher depends.
Now let its return to 319, which we found gave us
"king" on the first column of 53 and "deliver' and
"Scottish" on the preceding column (2, 52). We have
been modifying the count by adding and subtracting 190
and 269, the numbers above and below the break in the
text, between acts one and two, I, 53. But there are
other modifiers. If the reader will look at the same col-
umn (one of page 53), he will find that it is made up of
three subdivisions— the first extends from the top of the
column to the words "Actus Secundus Scena Prima;"
the second extends from that point to the stage direction :
"Enter Gads-hill;" and the third from that point to the
bottom of the column. Between the first word of the
last subdivision and the close of the column there are just
twenty words. Now this number, 20, becomes a third
modifier, just as I showed in the preceding pages— the
several subdivisions of col. 2, p. 74 were used— the 29
there being the equivalent of the 20 here.
If we deduct 20 from 319 we have 299 left; carry this
down the preceding column and it brings us to the word
"you."
Now let us go up a step farther. We saw that 319+
269=588 carried through 2, 52, and down I, 52, gave us
the word"days" Now let us take the alternate number,
423; add the alternate modifier, 190 (423+190=613), and
carry it through the same 2, 52, and up I, 52, countig the
double words on 2, 52, as ^one word each, but counting
the double words on i, 52, as two each, and the 6i3th
word is the word "more."
And here we come to a modifier which will appear
302 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
all through this part of the cipher work. There are 52
words between "Heigh-ho" and the end of the subdivi-
sion. But if we divide the hyphenated word into two
words, "Heigh ho," then between the first word "heigh"
and the end of the subdivision there are 53 words. And
consequently we shall find that we have not only 371+
52=423, but37i+53=424; and we also have 371-52=
319, and 371-53=318.
We saw that 371+52=423-190=233, and that this car-
ried up col. i, p. 53, gave us "few" and "the." Let us now
take 371+53=424, and deduct 190, and we have 234 left,
and this caried up the same column, in the same way,
gives us "a' and "in."
Let us put these results together and we have : —
— 190=234 ;
458—234=224+1=225 ;
225+3h.=228 (1,53) "in"
—down 371 minus 53=318 (i, 53) "a"
+up 371+52=423—190=233 ;
458—233=225+1=226 ;
226+3h.=229 (i, 53) "few"
—down 371—52=319+269=
588—464=124 (i, 52) "days"
+up 371+52=423+190=613
—461 (2, 52) =152; 472
— i52=320fi+5h.=326 (i, 52) "more"
—down 371—52=319 — 20=299 (2, 52) "you"
371+52=423+190=613
—480, (2, 53)=i33—
ioh.=i23; 458—123=335
(i, 53) "will"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 303
—down 371—52=319—52=267
+269=536—458=78;
78+20=98 (1,53) "be"
+up 37i+53=424f 52=476 ;
476—403 (2 section 2, 53)
=73 ; 458— 73=385+ i= 386 ( i, 53) "in"
—down 371—52=319—52=
267—52=12 1 5+269=1484 ;
484—458=26—20=6 (i, 53) "Scotland"
+up 371+52=424—269(1, 53)
=153; 479— i53=327+ih.
=328 (2, 53) "and"
—down 371—52=319—52=
267+269=536—458=78 (i, 53) "see"
+up 371+52=423+52=475
—403=72; 458—72=387 (i, 53) "my"
—down 371—52=1319+269=
588—458=130 (i, 53) "lord"
+up 371+52=423—190=
233 ; 458—233=225+1=
226+3h.=229 (i,53) "the"
—down 371— 52=319 (i,53) "king"
The reader may ask: — "What is all this about? Who
is this Scottish king?"
In answer we refer to the historical events of the
time. This play of 1st Henry IV. was first printed in
1598. In that year Elizabeth was sixty-five years old, and
had reigned forty years. Her early death was naturally
anticipated by both the great factions of the state: — the
followers of Essex and Cecil (she died four years
thereafter). Bacon belonged to the Essex party, notwith-
304 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
standing the fact that Cecil, Lord Burleigh, was his un-
cle, and Robert Cecil was his cousin ; but it is well known
that these men, who possessed the ear of the Queen, and
stood at the head of the government, systematically de-
pressed, belittled and antagonized Francis Bacon.
Two years after the date of the publication of this
play, containing this cipher story, Essex entered upon
teasonable practices which culminated in an attempt to
excite a rebellion and sieze upon and possibly murder the
Queen. He expiated his crime under the headsman's
axe. But behind all these conspiracies, was the great
question : — which side would J ames of Scotland support
when he came to the English throne? And both sides
were busy sending messengers and letters to Scotland
to ingratiate themselves with the future dispenser of
place and power. As long as Elizabeth lived the Cecil
faction was all-powerful, but the long-headed Burleigh
was taking steps for the day of change, and he did so
quite effectually; for when James came to the English
crown, his son, then made Earl of Salisbury, continued
to hold almost absolute power till the end of his life.
But, at the date of the cipher story, Essex and the
Bacons were hard at work striving to supplant the Cecils
in the confidence of King James, and establish them-
selves as his guides and councilors.
We read (see "Speckling Letters and Life of Bacon/'
Vol. II, p. 1 68), that in 1599 Lord Montjoy was sent as a
messenger from Essex to the king of Scotland:
"In the summer of 1599, he (Essex) had dispatched a
messenger secretly to Scotland, with some communication
on the forbidden object of the succession. The terms
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 305
are not known, but the general purport was to satisfy the
King that Essex would support his claim to succeed to
the crown upon Elizabeth's death; and to suggest some
course of proceeding which might lead to an acknowledg-
ment of that claim during her life."
Sir Charles Danvers said, in his confession, at the time
of his trial for treason, as one of Essex' abettors in his
rebellion :
"He" (Lord Mont joy) "entered into it the rather at
that time to serve my Lord of Essex, who by loss of her
Majesty, was like to run a dangerous fortune, unless he
took a course to strengthen himself by that means."
Speckling says :
"The answer to these questions must surely be, that the
negotiation was undertaken not only in the interest of
Essex, but in concert with him; and that the object was
to arrange some joint action, between the King of Scots
and the English army in Ireland, for the purpose of com-
pelling the Queen to assent to a formel declaration of his
right to succeed her on the throne of England."
And we further find (ibid, p. 343) that in the examin-
ation of Henry Cuffe, who suffered death for treason
with Essex, being then a prisoner, he testified (March
2d, 1600) in relation to the correspondence between Es-
sex and the Scottish king:
"He confesseth that Norton, the bookseller, carried the
Earl of Essex' letter to the Scottish king, which Norton
received at the hands of the Lord Willoughby at Bar-
wick, and that one part of the letter was to persuade the
coming up of the Earl of Mar to London, by the first
20
306 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
of February. And that the Earl of Essex had, under
his own hand, written instructions to the Earl of Mar,
which the Earl of Essex burnt.
"And this examinate was acquainted that the King
of Scots should return his answer in disguised words of
three books, which the king did accordingly. And that
was it which the Earl carried about him in a black purse.
He hath often heard that Anthony Bacon (conveyed
divers letters from the Earl to the King of Scots) was
an agent between the Earl and the King of Scotland and
was so accounted"
We read in a foot note by Spedding, that the words in
brackets "conveyed divers letters from the Earl to the
King of Scots," were first written in Cuffe's confession
and then stricken out! It would seem as if some power-
ful agency was at work to save Francis Bacon and his
brother Anthony from prosecution, for these old offences
then three years past.
And right here, in the play, on the very pages I am
working upon, we find references to that cipher in a book
or books, probably consisting of the marking of certain
words held together by an arithmetical system, under-
stood alike by Essex and the King.
We find these passages :
"Peace cousin, say no more.
And now / will unclasp e a secret book,
And to your quick conceiving discontents,
I'll read you matter, deep and dangerous,
As full of peril and adventurous spirit,
As to o'erwalk a current roaring loud
On the unstedfast footing of a Speare"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 307
"He apprehends a world of figures here,
But not the form of what he should attend."
That word "Speare" is the last syllable of the name of
the play-actor — here described as that fat gorbellied
knave, Jack-speare."
53x7=371= ' 172— (52— i ) "that"
53x7=371= 26— (54— i) "fat"
53x7=371= 181— (54— 2) "gorbellied"
53x7=371= 135— ( 54— i ) "rascal"
53x7=371= 477_(55_2) "Jack-"
53x7=371= 292— (52— i ) "Speare"
But we have given enough to show that there were
treasonable or suspicious communications passing be-
tween the Essex party, to which Bacon belonged, in 1597,
and King James of Scotland; and as the 1st part of
Henry IV., in which this portion of the Cipher narrative
appears, was published in 1598, it is probable that the
description given in the cipher, of "his brother" going
to Scotland is one of those very expeditions to which
Cuffe referred in his confession.
When the whole cipher narrative is worked out we
shall learn why Francis and Anthony Bacon were not
sent to the block with Essex ; and why it was that Essex,
who, in the presence of death, was ready to sacrifice all
his former friends and co-conspirators, did not attack
Francis Bacon or his brother. I can imagine the Cecils,
father and son, sparing their relatives, for the honor of
the family, but doing it under such circumstances of
humiliation as to render life a bitter and terriblv dis-
308 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
graceful thing. It may be that we have the reflex of their
mental condition in Tinwn of Athens and The Anatomy
of Melancholy.
"When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state,
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries,
And look upon myself and curse my fate."
—Sonnet XXIX.
i
"What potions have I drunk of Siren tears,
Distilled from limbecs foul as hell within ;
Applying fears to hopes and hopes to fears,
Still losing when I saw myself to win."
—Sonnet CXIX.
I have deemed these words of explanation necessary
before proceeding farther with this part of the Cipher
story.
We have seen that the same numbers which produced
the foregoing sentence : "in a few days more yon will see
my lord the King" also produced on the preceding
column the words "deliver unto" and "Scottish king."
Let us see what it was that was to be delivered unto the
Scottish king.
We take first the alternate root-number, 319 (371 — 52
=319). We saw that we obtained the word "you" in
the foregoing sentence, by deducting from 319 the modi-
fier 20, leaving 299, and that the 299th word on the
preceding column was the word "you." If the reader
will turn to the succeeding column (2,53), the 299th
word is "these."
This is obtained by going down the column. Let us
take the alternate root-number 423 (37 1+52—423), and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 309
carry it through the first subdivision of that same second
column of p. 53, which contains 76 words, and up the
preceding column, counting the double words as one word
each, and we find that it brings us to the word "letters"
— "these letters.''
371— 52=319— 20=299, down (2, 53) "these"
371+52=423—76=347; 458—347
r=m+i=ii2 (i»53) "letters"
How are the sentences connected together? Let us
see. Remember the messenger is going upon a perilous
journey to Scotland, in an age before stage-coaches or
railroad cars.
We have seen that the alternating numbers, 319 and
423, told the story at this place, and that they were
modified and the resulting words scattered far apart, so
as to bewilder any one who attempted to work out the
cipher, by adding and deducting certain modifiers, especi-
ally 190, 269 (269+4=273), 20, 76 (76+2=78), 403, etc.
Let us proceed.
The number 319 so far has always gone down the
columns; its alternate, 423, up the columns — 319 minus
269 leaves 50; the 5oth word on col. 2, p. 52, is "and;"
or deducting 4 more for the double words in 269 (189
end of Act I to bottom of col. i, 53), we have left 46,
which, on 2, 52, is "when"
Let us take the alternate, 423, and deduct the same mo-
difier, 269, from it; we have left 154; or deducting the 4
extra hyphenated words in 269, 150; let us carry this
number, 150, up that same column (2, 52), and it brings
us to the word "then" And so we have, alternating "and
then when."
310 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
We reach now another modifier. We have seen that we
have used the modifiers on the i st and 2d columns of page
53; we proceed forward to the next column, 1st of 54.
At the top of this column there is a break in the text
caused by the stage direction, "Enter Falstaff."
The first word of the next subdivision is "Poines ;" it
is the 1 8th word. We will see now that 18 becomes with
20, 269, 190, etc., one of the modifiers of the Cipher; we
add and subtract it as we did the others.
We saw that 423 — 190=233 carried up the 2d column
of p. 52 yielded "unto" and "king;" if we deduct 18 from
233 we have 215 left and this taken up the same column
gives us the word "you" the 247th word on the column.
Wre recur to the number 319; deducting one from
371 for the compound word "heigh-ho," as already ex-
plained, leaves us 318; add to this the modifier 190 and
we have 508; if we carry this through column 2 of page
52, counting the double words as two words each, we
have left 47, thus: 371—53=318+190=464 (461+3 ny)
— 47; and 47 carried down the same column yields the
word "find."
We return to 423. We deduct 269 and have 154 left;
we modify this by deducting 20; and we have 134 left;
we carry this up the same column (2, 52), and it brings
us to the word "the"
Then come the words "Scottish king" already given;
and the words "deliver unto"
Let us recur to the alternate number 319; add 190=
509 ; carry it through col. 2, p. 52, as before, counting the
double words as two words each, and we have 45 left
(371— 52=3191-190=509— 464=45), and the 45th word
is "him."
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
311
Let us take 424; carry it through the ist and 2d sub-
divisions of i, 54, 235 words, plus 3 double words=238,
and we have left 186; take this to the end of scene 2d
(2, 54) and carry it up from 359 and it brings us to the
word "both."
down 371—52=1319—269=50, (2, 52)
up 371+53=423—269=312, (2, 52)
down 371— 52=319— 269— 4 h.=
46, (2, 52)
up 371+52=423—190^18=
247,
(2, 52)
down 371— 52=319— i h.=3i8+
190=508—464=44, (2, 52)
UP 371+52=423—269 — 20=
328, (2,52)
down 371—52=319—2 h.=3i7, (2, 52)
up 371+52=423—190+2 h.=
231, Up 2, 52= (2, 52)
down 371— 52=319, (2, 52)
up 371+52=423—190=229, (2, 52)
down 371— 52=319+190=509, 45 (2, 52)
up 371+53=424, (2, 54)
down 371—52=319—20=299, (2, 53)
up 371+52=423—76=347; 458
—347=112, (1,53)
"and"
"then"
"when"
"you"
"find"
"the"
"Scottish"
"king"
"deliver"
"unto"
"him"
"both"
"these"
"letters."
And here is a reference to "York Place," in London,
where Francis Bacon was born. He describes how that
"fawning grey-hound," his cousin, Robert Cecil, and that
"subtle devil," his uncle Burleigh, flattered him at York
Place, during his father's life-time :
"Why, what a candy deal of courtesy
This fawning grey-hound then did proffer me."
312 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
Take 371, deduct 52=319; deduct 97 (the last modi-
fier,, i, 53, 20+77, 2> 53) and we have 222, and 222, 2, 52,
is "Yorke."
Take 371, add 521=423; from 242, (2d. sec. i, 53), to
76, (2, 53) there are 293 words; add 293 to 423 and we
have 716; carry this through i, 53, 458 words; and we
have 258 left; and 258 carried up 2, 52, the same which
gave us "Yorke" brings us to the 2O4th word, "Place."
And 371 plus 53 — 424 — 189=235, and this carried up
2, 52 gives us, "my;" and 371 minus 53=318, and this,
less the same 97, (which gave us "Yorke") brings us to
the 22ist word, "uncle"- -"my uncle" — Burleigh.
And 371 — 269=102 (i, 53) =" cousin."
And he describes him as "a most villainous fellow,
who would be glad to see the whole house of Sir Nicholas
Bacon hanged by the neck, by the common hangman"
371+189=560—269=291; 479 (2, 53)
— 291=188+1=189= "Nicholas"
371—189=182; 182+ 189=371 (i, 53) "Bacon"
Let us turn to another example of the cipher.
All students of the Shakespeare Plays will remember
that the name of "Sir John Oldcastle" was mixed up,
strangely enough, with that of Sir John Falstaffe. The
real Sir John Oldcastle of history was Lord Cobham. "one
of the most strenuous supporters of the reformation of
Wickliffe." His descendants, the Cobhams of Elizabeth's
time, were enemies of Francis Bacon. In the old play,
"The Famous Victories of Henry V.," we find the char-
acter of Sir John Oldcastle; and there was an old play,
printed in 1600, which bore the name of "Sir John Old-
castle." It has been argued that the descendants of Lord
THD CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 313
Cobham complained to Queen Elizabeth of the insult
thrown upon their distinguished ancestor, by represent-
ing him as a gross, fat rogue, a liar, a coward and a thief ;
and that the Queen compelled the change of the name of
the character from Sir John Oldcastle to Sir John Fal-
staff. This is confirmed by the fact already alluded to,
that the author of the epilogue to the second part of
Henry VI., seemed obliged to make an excuse or apology,
and does so in these words : "For anything I know, Fal-
staff shall die of a sweat, unless already he is killed with
your hard opinions ; for Oldcastle died a martyr, and this
is not the man."
If now we find the name "Sir John Oldcastle" coming
out of the text, by regular rule, where nothing of the
sort appears on the surface, even the most incredulous
may fairly conclude that there is a cipher in this play.
Now I have shown that.a part of the Cipher narrative
was produced by the alternations of 52 from the first
subdivision of Act 2d, scene ist, added to or subtracted
from the root-number, 371 (53x7=371; 371—52=319;
3714-52=423), and carried alternately up and down the
same column.
If we take 371 — 52=319, and carry it to the top of the
second subdivision of column 2, p. 53, the 77th word
("what"), we find that it brings us to the 396th word
(319+77—396), which is "Castle." I state it thus to
make it plainer to the reader, but the same result is
obtained if we simply say we will modify 319 by adding
77 (319-1-77=396), just as we modified it by adding 269,
190, etc.
Let us now take the alternate number 423 (371+52=
423), adding in I for the extra word in the 52, making it
314? THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
in all 424; and count upwards from the end of scene 3,
Act i, on column i, p. 53, and we find 189 words, which
taken from 424 leaves 235 : and this carried up the next
column (2, 53), the same on which we found the word
"Castle," brings us to the word "old" the 245th word on
the column; which together gives us "Old-castle."
Now then we take 319, the alternate number again,
and modify it, as we did in previous instances, by deduct-
ing again 52 (371 — 52=319 — 52=267), and again de-
duct 20, the last subdivision of col. i, p. 53, and we have
the 247th word "John" (371 — 52=319 — 52=267 — 20=
247).
Let us return to the alternate number 423; and again
begin at the same spot, the i89th word, end of sc. 3, Act
i, col. i, 53, go upwards and then up the next column,
just as we did to obtain the word "old," and we find that
the remainder, 234 (371+52=423, minus 189=234)
brings us to the word "Sir" — making altogether: "Sir
John Old castle" thus :
+up 371+52=423—189=234,
up 2, 40, 2, 53 (2, 53) "Sir"
— down 371 — 52=319 — 52=267
—20=247, (2, 53) ((John"
-Kip 371+52=423+1 h. (52)
=424—189=235, up 2, 45 (2, 53) "old"
—down 371—52=319+77=396, (2, 53) "castle"
Observe the exquisite cunning of this work — the words
Sir — John — old all come together in a bunch, but arrang-
ed in a different order, as "old — sir — John" being the
245th, 246th and 247th words. Can any one in the pres-
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 315
ence of such an example doubt the reality of the cipher?
But we go on.
We saw that 319+77 gave us the 396th word "castle."
But we failed to count in the 23 bracketed and hyphen-
ated words on that column, over which we passed to
reach the 396th word. If we count in these words then
the 396th word is the 373d word (396 — 23=373) which
is "their."
But we saw that the word "old" of "Oldcastle" was ob-
tained by counting 235 words up that column (2, 53) (424
— 189=235) ; let us now carry that same number, 235,
up the preceding column (i, 53), and it brings us to the
word "put." "Put their" — what? Now take that same
number 371 — 52=423, deduct 189 and we have 234 left,
which yielded us "Sir " now carry it through the words
in the first subdivision of the next column (i, 54), seven-
teen in number, and we have 217 left; carry this up the
next column (2, 54), from the end of the scene, and we
reach the word "legs." "Put their legs" — where ?
If we take that same modified root-number, 396 (319+
77^=396), which gave us "castle" and "their" and which
we shall see, as we proceed, will give us many other
words, and carry it to that same column of page 54, by
going up, which we obtained "legs" and carry it through
that column, counting the double words as two words
each, and we will find that the 396th word is the tenth
word on the next column (i, 55), the word "in" The
student will observe that the clue-word "He" at the bot-
tom of 2, 54, is repeated at the top of the next column.
In such a case, as I have already explained, we count it
but once.
Let us now take the alternate number, 234, which pro-
816 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI.AYS.
duced "Sir," and plus the one extra hyphenated word in
the 52, gave us "old," "put," "legs" and carry it up that
same second column of page 54, counting the two hyphen-
ated words as two words each, and the 234th word is the
!53d word on the column, "the."
We return now to 396 (319+77=396), but we deduct
the modifier 18 (top i, 54), and we have 378 left (the
378th word is "out") ; but to reach that 378th word we
pass over nine compound or double words; if we count
these two words each, then the 378th word on the column,
is the 369th word (378 — 9=369)= "boots" — "put their
legs in the boots."
What are the "boots?" We turn to Webster's Dic-
tionary, and, under the word "boot" we read :
"2. An instrument made of iron, formerly used to
torture criminals, particularly in Scotland."
And then follows this quotation :
"So he was put to the torture, which in Scotland they
call the boots; for they put a pair of iron boots close on
the legs, and drive wedges between them and the leg."
This method of torture was very common in Europe
at that time — it was sometimes called "the Spanish boot ;"
it was used in France and in England. In extreme cases
the leg and foot were reduced to a jelly. The. use of
this mode of torture was not abolished in England until
the reign of Queen Anne.
We have just seen that 319, (371 — 52=319), +77,
(2, 53), =396; and 396 minus the modifier 18, (top
T, 54) gave us 378; and the 378th word (2, 53) is "out."
Now take the alternate number, 4*23, (371+52=423),
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PI,AYS. 317
and carry it up from the bottom of 2, 53, and it brings
us to the 5/th word, which is "warrants" : — "a warrant
out."
The word "a" ("a warrant out"), is derived from
371 — 52=319; carried down from the end of the first
section, 2, 53, (77), =^6=" castle." Deduct 269, (the
lower section I, 53) from 396 and we have 127 left, and
the I27th word, (2, 53), is "a." And so we have "a
•warrant out."
Who is the warrant for?
We recur to 31 9+77=396=" Castle." Deduct 189,
(i, 53), and we have 207 left; deduct 77, (2, 53), and
we have 130 left, and the i3Oth word, I, 53, is "loe" or
"Lord?*
We reached the word "warrant" (57-2, 53), by carry-
ing 423 up 2, 53. But if we count in the twelve words
in brackets and the ten hyphenated words, as two words
each, then the 423d word is the 79th word : "Chamber-
laine.''
WQ recur to 319+77=396. We deducted 189, (the
first section i, 53), from 396 to get "Lord." Let us now
deduct 243, (the first word of the 3d section i, 53, 4- that
i hyphenated word "Heigh-ho"), from 396, and we have
152 left; and the I52d word, on that same column, (2, 53)
is "Company."
And so we learn there is "a zvarrant out" for "the
Lord Chamberlaine Company " to which Shakspere be-
longed; (see Halliwell Phillipp's "Outlines," page 76),
and that the Queen proposed to "put their legs in the
boots, and make them speak." And all this is in connec-
tion with the play of "Sir John Old-Castle"
And if we add 235, (ist section i, 54), to 57, ("war-
318 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
rant") it brings us to 292 "foot-land-rakers;" and the
alternate 319, minus 18, (i, 54), gives us 301, — "mus-
tachio-purple-hued-inaltworms" And the actors are fur-
ther described, in the words of the text :
"Such as will strike sooner than speake; and speak
sooner than drink, and drink sooner than pray ; * * *
they prey continually on the commonwealth, * * *
picking of purses," etc.
But let us go a step farther.
We saw that 396 which produced "Castle," of "Old-
castle," was obtained by taking the secondary root-num-
ber 319, and adding 77 to it (319^77=396) ; and 319
was obtained by deducting 52 from 371. Now let us
employ again the modifier 20, by deducting it from 396 ;
this leaves us 376, or if we count in the 9 extra hyphen-
ated words in the column, the 376th word will be the
367th word "her."
We take now the other secondary alternate root num-
ber, 423, and add i to it for that extra word in "heigh-ho,"
making 424 .; deduct from it 189, for the number of words
in the first subdivision of col. i, p. 53, and we have the
number 235, which carried up col. 2, of p. 53, gave us
"old" part of the word "Old-castle." Let us modify this
by deducting the modifier 17, already used to obtain the
word "legs," and we have 218 left, which carried up that
same column (2, p. 53), counting in all the words,
bracketed and hyphenated, brings us to the word "grace"
— "her grace" — the Queen.
If we take 371 and deduct, not 52 but 53, for the extra
word of "heigh-ho" we have 318 left; add 77 as before,
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 319
to this and we have 395 ; deduct the modifier 20, and we
have 375, and the 375th word is "will"
Now let us put these results together :
—down 371—52=319+77=396—
20=376—9 11=367, (2,53) "her"
4-up 371+53=423+1=424—
189=235— 1 7=21 8+
b. & h.=276, (2, 53) "grace"
—down 371—53=318+77=395—
20=375, (2, 53) "will"
+up 371+52=423+1=424—
189=235, up 224= (1,53) "put"
—down 371—52=319+77=396,
minus 23 b. & 11=373, (i, 53) "their"
+up 371+52=423—189=234
-17=217=143 (2,54) "legs"
—down 37 1— 53=318+77+2 h. &
b-=397> minus 384f3 h.
=10, '1,55) "w"
+up 371+52=423—189=234 ;
384 (2, 54) —234+2 h.=
153, (2, 54) "the"
—down 371— 52=3 19f 77=396—
18=378—9 11=369, (2,53) "boots"
We saw that 235 carried up the first column of page
53, brought us to "put" but if we deduct 20 it will bring
us to the 234th word "and." If now we take 396 and
deduct the modifier 17, we have 379 left; but if we count
in all the bracketed words on the column, 13 in number,
it brings us to the 366th word "make" — "and make." We
saw that 217 (423 — 189=234 — 17=217), carried up
from the end of scene second, brought us to the word
320 THE CIPHER IN THE SKAKESPEARE PLAYS.
"legs/' but if we begin 25 words lower down, from the
bottom of the column, (384), the 21 7th word up the col-
umn, counting in the one hyphenated extra word, is the
word ''them3 — the i69th word.
We saw that to get the word "John" ("Sir John Old-
castle") we deducted from 319 the modifiers 52 and 20;
let us apply the same treatment to 396 (3i9+77r=396),
and we have 396 — 52=344 — 20=324, and the 324th-
word is "speak." And so we have : "her grace will put
their legs in the boots and make them speak"
+up 371+52=423+1=424—
189=235—20=215 up
=234 (1,53) "an*'
—down 371—52=319+77=396—
17=379— 1 3 b.=366, (2, 53) "make"
+up 371+52=423—189=234
—17=217, =169 (2, 54) "them"
—down 371— 52=3 i9f 77=396—
52=344—20=324, (2,53) "speak"
Let us now turn to column two of page 54 (the page
next to that which we have just been studying) and see
what an application of the same rules will bring forth.
The 37 ist word on that column is "contented" We
will find this also refers to Shakspere's company of actors,
"the Lord Chamberlain Company," and is part of a
graphic description of the wandering band of vagrants,
highwaymen and pickpockets as they traveled through
the rural districts of England, in the sixteenth century,
sleeping beneath the hedges and acting in the barns.
There is at the top of that 23d column, p. 54, a sub-
division ending with the word "business," containing 123
words. Now just as we saw 189 or 190 added and
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 321
subtracted alternately we will find 123 at the top of this
column and 24 (between "But," the first word of the last
subdivision on the column, and the end of the column),
and the other modifiers on the column, added and sub-
tracted, as the story progresses.
For instance, if we take 371 and deduct from it 123,
the number of words in the first subdivision, we have 248
left ; if we carry this upward from the end of "the scene
on that column (scene 2d, Act II) it brings us to the
word "happy." So we have the collocation "happy, con-
tented/' one going up the column, the other going down
the column. But as I have shown there is a fragment of
24 words at the end of the column. Let us deduct 24 from
371 and we have 347 left. The 347th word down the
same column is "along," or counting the three compound
words as two words each, the word "as;" while 371
carried up the same column brings us to the I4th word,
"walk" or counting in the three compound words as two
words each, to the I7th word "they" Observe the strik-
ing fact that 371 — 24, and 371 alone, carried up and down
the same column, give us the words'^ — they — walk —
But we deducted 123 from 371 to obtain "happy"
going up the column. Let us now add 123 to 371 and
go down the column: 371+123=494; carry it through
that column (just as we did with col. i, p. 53) and we
have no left (371+123=494— 384=1 i°)> ™>w carry
that down from the end of the first section of 123 words,
and it brings us to the 233d word, "merrily"
Now let us carry that number 371 down the previous
column (i of 54) and it brings us to the word "sung;"
and if we again take 371 and deduct that last sub-
21
322 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
division 24 we have 347 left (which produced as along),
add to 347 123=470; carry this again through that 2d
column of page 54 and we have 86 left, or, counting the
three compound words as two words each, 83 ; carry this
83 up the preceding column, which gave us "sung" and
we get the word "filthy;" but to make the word
"sung" the 37ist word we had to count the five compound
words we passed over in the count as one word each; if
we count them as two words each then the 37ist word on
the column is the word "ballads" Observe that there are
just as many extra hyphenated words on that column as
the difference between 371, "sung" and 366, "ballads;"
and that we have, alternately going up and down the
column, the collocation "sung filthy ballads;" and all this
in connection with "happy, contented" men, who "mer-
rily walk along"
Is anybody shallow enough to think all this could be
the result of chance, and that there is no cipher in the
play?
We saw that 347 (371 — 24=347) gave us "as" and
"along" and "filthy;" now suppose we modify 347 by
deducting 17, the first subdivision on page 54, as 24 is the
last, and we have left 330 (371—24=347—17=330) ;
now carry this up the 1st col. of page 55 (the next page),
and it brings us to the word "set" And so we have :
up 371—123 (top col.)=:
248, up from end sc .= ^ "happy"
down 371 ^"contented"
o/l
up 371—24 (hot. col.)=
347—17=330, up next
col.= "set"
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 323
We find the word "set"- used in the sense of a collec-
tion, in Taming of the Shrew, II, I :
"Take you the lute and you the set of books."
And also in Richard LI, III, 3 :
'Til give my jewels for a set of beads."
If we return to the number, 347, which gave us "as"
"along" "filthy" etc., and modify it by deducting the last
subdivision of the scene (col. 2, p. 54), which contains
60 words, we have 287 left (371 — 24=347 — 60=287)
and the 287th word is "more" — which goes, with "happy"
-"more happy " and this, as we saw, goes with "con-
tented" and "set" — a more happy, contented set — of
what? Here we have it.
We saw that the same 347+123 amounted to 470, and
that this carried through 384 left 86, and that this, count-
ing in the three double words as two words each, gave
us the word "filthy" Now let us carry that 86 up the
column on which it originated, the same column which
gave us "walk" "along" "as," "happy," "contented," etc.,
etc., and we find it brings to the 299th word "villains"
Now let us modify 371 by deducting the modifier, used
repeatedly before, 17, and we have 354 left; carry this
up the last column, and.it brings us to the 3ist word "of"
And so we have a "more happy, contented set of
villains."
We have obtained some of our words by deducting
123; the second subdivision ends at the 2i6th word and
contains two double words, making 218 in all. Let us
deduct 218 from 371, and we have 153 left; carry this up
324 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
from the end of the scene (col. 2, p. 54), and it gives us
the word "you," the 2O7th word.
We saw that the 37ist word was "contented" but if
we count the three double words we pass over as two
words each, we find the 37ist word is the 368th word on
the column, which is "could!9
We saw that 347 (371—24=347) plus 123=470—384,
gave us 86, which carried through column 2 of p. 54, pro-
duced "filthy/' "villains," etc. Let us now carry that re-
mainder 86, less the three hyphenated words, up from the
end of the scene, on that same column (2 of 54) and it
brings us to the word "not" — the 277th word.
Now we have been counting 123 and 216, or from the
ends of the first and second subdivisions of col. 2, p. 54,
upivards, let us now count downwards from 123 to the
bottom of the column, counting the double words as two
words each, and we find we pass over 264 words. Deduct
264 from 347 and we have 83 left; count down the same
column and the 83d word is "find"
The number 248 which gave us "happy" was thus ob-
tained : 371 — 123 (top col. 2, 54) =248; if we deduct 24
from 248=224; if we carry this up from the end of the
scene on col. 2,. p. 54, and count the two double words as
two words each, and it brings us to the I38th word, "a;"
while the same number, carried up from the end of the
column, brings us to the i6ist word, "they"
And so we have: "a more happy, contented set of
villains you could not find, as they merrily walk along
and sung filthy ballads."
Those last three words alone should settle the existence
of a cipher in the play.
53x7=371 ; and the 37ist word (i, 54) is "sung" but
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 325
if you count in the hyphenated words as two words each,
it is "'ballads" --'sung ballads;" while the • same 371
carried through the upper and lower fragments of
the next column and brought up col. i, 54, brings us to
"filthy;" and so we have it that this merry crew of vaga-
bonds "sung filthy ballads."
We find this form of expression in Pericles, IV. Gower,
(see Third Folio, 1664) :
"Or when to the lute
She sung, and made the night-bird mute."
But I must not go farther with these examples, or I
shall make this book as bulky as "The Great Cryptogram."
The question is often asked me : "Does the cipher ex-
tend through all the Shakespeare Plays?"
I think it do.es; and the following table goes to show
that it does ; and that "Shakspere is discussed or referred
to in every one of the plays :"
326
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
T-HrHrHCMCOr-irHrH
C
c
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eocoeocoeococo
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THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 327
S $3 C C S C a
^ ^ ^ O Q^ (1^ ^
o o o o u o o
CO CO CO CO tO CO CO
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03 C^ Cu 03 • Cu Ctf • ,'— - • * • Cv
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co rococo,/} co to coo3cococ«co
rH^COrHrH^rHcMt^rHCDCOCMCM COOCM^rH
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« £ £ £ . "? L. aT S if sT aT £ 4. fc ,. . £ ^ $
^•^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
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CXi^G.tXCLC^^QHfX^iCXiCLS Ci_QHCXtQ.QHCL|{i
CO Co CO Co Co Co Co Co CO CO CO CO A^ CO CO CO CO CO CO CO
rHrH rH ^rH-^CM^rHr-iCOCM'^rHCM^rH^
^^ -4»> ^^^-.^^^^^^^^,^-
0303 c^j 0303030303030303030303030303
coco co cococococoiococococococococo
03 03
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fl) *-T *4 * ~. ~ ^~ Z
L_J CJ V . : . : . • ,-** r*-i - O
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(M CMCMffirH CMCOP<
328 THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS.
<u a; a> co a>
& 8 £ ' g C
CO CO CO O CO
sa a o '*&
ctf cd oj • • j- /—^ • ^
M ,(_> -M ^j
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sag sssg .O.ISE g
Cu w Ctf ^ C^ Cd G3 * C^ Q^ Cu c5 C^J
COCOCO tOj/jCOcO rtcO^O'CO CO
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CO CQr4 CS CN CS o
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£> £>*$ 55 ^ "§
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I II Jill I
THE CIPHER IN THE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS. 329
We should like to see our friends, the advocates of
Shakspere, duplicate this list from any other set of
writings.
BOOK FIVE.
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF
THE CIPHER.
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 333
CHAPTER XXIX.
The Rosicrucian Society.
Francis Bacon was filled with tremendous purposes.
He "laid great bases for eternity." He knew that across
the track of his life lay the black chasm — death ; marking
the end of his earthly labors.
It was most natural that he should seek to supplement
his own exertions with the powers of others — that he
should leave his unfinished work to some trusted associa-
tion, filled with his purposes.
In the British Museum we find him, in M. S., in the
Commentaries or "Transportata" maturing his plans for
''depreciating the philosophy of the Grecians, with some
better respect to ye Egyptians, Persians, and Chaldees,*
and the utmost antiquity, and the mysteries of the poets."
"To consyder what opynions are fitt to nourish Tanquarr*
Ansae, so as to graft the new upon the old, ut religiones
solent," of the "ordinary cours of incompetency of reason
for natural philosophy and invention of woorks." "Also
of means to procure 'histories' of all things, natural and
mechanical, lists of errors, observations, axioms, &c."
Then follow entries from which we abridge .•
"Layeing for a place to command wytts and pennes,
Westminster, Eton, Wynchester, spec(ially) Trinity Coll.,
Cam., St. John's, Cam. ; Maudlin Coll., Oxford.
334 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
"Q«. Of young schollars in ye universities. It must
be the post nati. Giving pensions to four, to compile the
two histories, ut supra. Foundac : Of a college for in-
ventors. Library, Inginary.
"Qu. Of the order and discipline, the rules and praae-
scripts of their studyes and inquyries, allowances for
travailing, intelligence, and correspondence with ye unt-
versities abroad.
"Ou. Of the maner and prescripts touching jecresy,
traditions and publication."
Mrs Pott, in her book, "Francis Bacon and His Secret
Society," p. 214, says:
"It is clear that the wits and pens of 'the young schol-
lars/ (who, we learn from the Rosicrucian documents,
were to be sixty-three in number), were chartered and
secured under the seal of secrecy.
"The last of the manifestoes in Mr. Waite's book ('The
Real History of the Rosicrucians, by A. E. Waite') con-
tains this passage, in which few who have read much
of Bacon, will fail to recognize his sentiments, his in-
tentions, nay his very words."
Here follows the quotation :
"I was twenty when this book was finished ; but me-
thinks I have outlived myself; I begin to be weary of
the sun. I have shaken hands with delight, and know
all is vanity, and I think no man can live well once, but he
could live twice. For my part I would not live over my
hours past, or begin again the minute? of my days; not
because I have lived well, but for fear that I should live
them worse. At my death I mean to make a total adieu
of the world, not caring for the burden of a tombstone
and epitaph, but in the universal Register of God I fix
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 335
my contemplations on Heaven. I writ the Rosicrucian In-
fallible Axiomata in four books; and study, not for my
own sake only, but for theirs that study not for them-
selves. In the law I began to be a perfect clerk ; I writ
the Idea of the Law, etc., for the benefit of my friends,
and practice in King's Bench. I envy no man that knows
more than myself, but pity them that know less. Now,
in the midst of all my endeavours there is but one thought
that dejects me, that my acquired parts must perish with
myself, nor can be legacied amongst my dearly beloved
and honoured friends."
Note that the Rosicrucian writer says :
"I begin to weary of the sun/'
And Macbeth says, (5, 5.) :
"I 'gin to be aweary of the sun."
And the motive and inception of the Rosicrucian Society
is found in those words : "There is but one thought that
dejects me, that my acquired parts must perish with my-
self, nor can be legacied amongst my dearly beloved and
honoured friends."
This is from the Rosicrucian writer ; and we find Bacon,
in his private memoranda, jotting down these words :
"Layeing for a place to command wytts and pennes. * * *
Of the manner and prescripts touching secresy, traditions,
and publication."
In 1592 Bacon wrote to his uncle, Lord Burleigh: "I
do easily see that place of any reasonable countenance
doth bring commandment of more wits than a man's own,
which is the thing I greatly affect." (Spedding, L. &. L.
I., 109.)
336 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
What does all this mean but that Bacon was prepar-
ing to form a secret society of scholars, to be carried
down the ages by "tradition," that is to say by word of
mouth, with regulations as to the "publication" of the
secret at some future time.
Bacon said in the Valerius Terminus :
"That the discretion anciently observed * * * of pub-
lishing part and reserving part to a private succession,
and publishing in such a manner whereby it may not be
to the taste or capacity of all, but shall, as it were, single
and adopt his (its) reader, is not to be laid aside, both for
the avoiding of abuse in the excluded, and the strengthen-
ing of affection in the admitted"
In the chapter in the De Augmentis, next after that in
which he discusses Ciphers, Bacon proceeds to discuss the
"Handing on the Lamp, or Method of Delivery to Pos-
terity!"
Would not an organized secret association of scholars,
such as the Rosicrucian Society, furnish a means of
"Handing on of the Lamp," by tradition, from mouth to
mouth, and from generation to generation? Could not,
in this way, important facts be "delivered to posterity,"
supplemented by a deposit of ancient papers, to vouch
for the truth of the traditions ?
What was the Rosicrucian Society?
"A halo of poetic splendour," says Heckethorn, ('Sec-
ret Societies of all Ages and Countries/) surrounds the
order of the Rosicrucians ; the magic lights of fancy play
round their graceful day-dreams, while the mystery in
which they shroud themselves lends additional attraction
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 337
to their history. But their brilliancy was that of a meteor.
It just flashed across the realms of imagination and in-
tellect, and vanished for ever; not, however, without
leaving behind some permanent and lovely traces of its
hasty passage. * * * Poetry and romance are deeply
indebted to the Rosicrucians for many a fascinating crea-
tion. The literature of every European country contains
hundreds of pleasing fictions, whose machinery has been
borrowed from their system of philosophy, though that
itself has passed away." (Waite's Hist, of Rosicrucians,
p. n.)
It seems to have first appeared the same year — 1616 —
that William Shakespere died at Stratford-on-Avon.
Mrs. Potts says :
"The title of Roscrucian was, we know, never given
nor adopted until after the publication of the Chymical
Marriage of Christian Rosencreutz, in 1616. The writer
in the Cyclopaedia seems to acknowledge that the truth
about the origin of the Rosicrucian Fraternity is known,
though known only to a few ; and we have strong reasons
for believing that, in Germany at least, a certain select
number of the learned members of the "Catholic (not the
Papal) Church, are fully aware of how, when and where
this society was formed, which, after a while assumed
the name of Roscrucian, but which the initiates in Ger-
many call by its true name — "Baconian." ("Francis Bacon
and His Secret Society," p. 200.)
There are many thing which point to the conclusion
that Francis Bacon wras the real founder of the Rosicru-
cian Fraternity. Its purposes were very much the same
22
338 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
as his own. His great biographer, Mr. James Spedding,
says : (Letters and Life of Francis Bacon, Vol. I, p. 3.)
"For the present his field of ambition was still in the
schoolroom and library ; where, perhaps, from the delicacy
of his constitution, he was more at home than in the play-
ground. His career there was victorious ; new prospects
of boundless extent opening on every side ; till at length,
just about the age at which an intellect of quick growth
begins to be conscious of original power, he was sent to
the University, where he hoped to learn all that men
knew. By the time, however, that he had gone through
the usual course, and heard what the various professors
had to say, he was conscious of a disappointment. It
seemed that towards the end of the sixteenth century,
men neither knew nor aspired to know more than was to
be learned from Aristotle; a strange thing at any time;
more strange than ever just then, when the heavens them-
selves seemed to be taking up the argument on their own
behalf, and by suddenly lighting up within the very region
of the Unchangeable and Incorruptible, and presently ex-
tinguishing, a new fixed star as bright as Jupiter — (the
new star in Cassiopeia shone with full luster on Bacon's
freshmanship) — to be protesting by signs and won-
ders against the cardinal doctrine of the Aristotel-
ian philosophy. It was then that a thought struck him,
the date of which deserves to be recorded, not for any-
thing extraordinary in the thought itself, which had
probably occurred to others before him, but for its influ-
ence upon his after life. If our study of nature be thus
barren, he thought, our method of study must be wrong ;
might not a better method be found ? The suggestion was
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OE THE CIPHER. 339
simple and obvious. The singularity was in the way he
took hold of it. With most men such a thought would
have come and gone in a passing regret ; a few might
have matured it into a wish; some into a vague project;
one or two" might, perhaps, have followed it out so far as to
attain a distinct conception of the better method and
hazard a distant indication of the direction in which it
lay. But in him the gift of seeing, in prophetic vision,
what might be and ought to be, was united with the prac-
tical talent of devising means and handling minute de-
tails. He could at once imagine like a poet and execute
like a clerk of the works. Upon the conviction 'This may
be done/ followed at once the question 'How may it be
done?' Upon that question answered, followed the
resolution to try and do it.
''Of the degress by which the suggestion ripened into
a project, the project into an undertaking, and the under-
taking unfolded itself into distinct proportions and the
full grandeur of its total dimensions, I can say nothing.
But that the thought first occurred to him during his
residence at Cambridge, therefore before he had com-
pleted his fifteenth year, we know upon the best authority
—his own statement to Dr. Rawley. I believe it ought
to be regarded as the most important event of his life;
the event which had a greater influence than any other
upon his character and future course. From that moment
there was awakened within his breast the appetite which
cannot be satiated, and the passion which cannot commit
excess. From that moment he had a vocation which
employed and stimulated all the energies of his mind,
gave a value to every vacant interval of time, an interest
and significance to every random thought and casual ac-
340 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
cession of knowledge; an object to live for, as wide as
humanity, as immortal as the human race ; an idea to live
in vast and lofty enough to fill the soul forever with
religious and heroic aspirations. From that moment,
though still subject to interruptions, disappointments, er-
rors and regrets, he could never be without either work,
or hope, or consolation."
This statement will appear the more credible when we
remember the case of our great American poet, William
Cullen Bryant. He communicated verses to the county
gazette before he was ten years of age ; his "Embargo," a
political satire, and his "Spanish Revolution," were pub-
lished in his fourteenth year; while "Thanatopsis," per-
haps his greatest production, was written in his eighteenth
year ! Many similar instances might be given.
Bearing in mind this statement, that Francis Bacon,
before he was fifteen years of age, had already discarded
the philosophy of Aristotle, which had held captive the
mind of the human race for two thousand years ; and had
wrought out his plan for the improvement and redemption
of mankind — a plan which was the parent of all our
modern, material progress, we turn to what is said by the
founder of the Rosicrucian Fraternity :
"I was twenty when this book was finished; but me-
thinks I have outlived myself."
The "Fama Fraternitatis," speaking of the founder of
the Rosicrucian Society, says :
"He was but of the age of sixteen years when he came
thither."
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 341
Does it often happen that in the same era, two youths
should each harhor the same world-embracing plans, for
the benefit of humanity; and one should establish a great
secret society, which spread all over Europe, and the
other build up a grand philosophy, which is destined to
live, and bear fruit, as long as civilization endures?
In the 'Tama Fraternitatis" of "the Meritorious Order
of the Rosy Cross," addressed to the learned in general
and the governors of Europe, we find (Waite's Real His-
tory, page 65) :
"Seeing the only wise and merciful God in these latter
days hath poured out so richly His mercy and goodness
to mankind, whereby we do attain more and more to the
perfect knowledge of His Son, Jesus Christ, and of
Nature, that justly we may boast of the happy times
wherein there is not only discovered unto us the half part
of the world, which was heretofore unknown and hidden
(America), but He hath also made manifest unto us many
wonderful and never-heretofore seen works and creatures
of Nature ; and, moreover, hath raised men, imbued with
great, wisdom, which might partly renew and reduce all
arts, fin this our spotted and imperfect age) to per-
fection ; so that finally man might thereby understand his
own nobleness and worth, and why he is called Microcos-
imis, and how far his knowledge extendeth in Nature."
We see here that Francis Bacon, at the age of fifteen
years, was full of tremendous schemes for the welfare
of the human family, and for the reformation of the whole
world. We find that, at about the same time, a secret
society was established, whose foundation is lost in
clouds of obscurity, but whose first publication appears
342 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
about the time of William Shakespere's death ; and in that
publication we are told that the founder of it was but
sixteen years of age when he travelled into Arabia to
obtain information which Europe was not able to give
him.
We find Bacon was casting about to find kindred spirits
to help him carry out his great works ; and then we are
told that this sixteen year old founder of the Rosy Cross
Society gathered around him three other parties, who
subsequently extended their total number to eight. And
these brothers were each to select a successor, who should
take his place, after his decease ; and "the fraternity should
remain secret one hundred years." ( Waite, p. 73.)
And this society attacked, like Bacon, the Aristotelian
philosophy, and sought, like Bacon, "the reformation of
the whole wide world."
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 343
CHAPTER XXX.
Is Rosier ucianism Still Alive?
It would seem, at first thought, as if it were impossible
that that mysterious association of the seventeenth cen-
tury, the Rosicrucian Society, should be alive in this the
nineteenth century, 283 years after it was established ; and
that it should still be the custodian of the secret of the
cipher in the Shakespeare and other writings.
But these facts seem to be established:
1. That Bacon, at fifteen years of age, had discarded
the Aristotelian philosophy, and had commenced a vast
scheme for the reformation of the whole world, — "for
the glory of God and the relief of man's estate."
2. That the Rosicrucian Society was founded by a
youth of sixteen, who entertained precisely similar views
and purposes, — for the "Universal Reformation of the
Whole Wide World."
3. We have the proofs, in Bacon's own writing, that
he sought to create a brotherhood of kindred spirits, who
would carry out his work, after his mortal career had ter-
minated : — "layeing for a place to command wytts and
pennes."
4. There exists today in the world a most extensive
and extraordinary association called the Society of Free-
masons.
344 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF «THE CIPHER.
There would seem to be no doubt that the Guild of
working Masons, — the actual mechanics, — extended back
to a great antiquity. In the barbarous ages they passed,
in groups, from country to country, erecting castles, with
which the ruling caste could over-awe and hold in sub-
jection the ignorant and degraded multitudes.
It was necessary that the secrets of their handicraft
should be carefully preserved, — hence they placed guards
(the tilers), while they worked, and used grips and
passwords, to exclude spies.
But speculative Masonry is a modern institution.
The Encyclopaedia Britannica, Vol. IX, p. 747, says
Inigo Jones was patron of the Masons of England from
1607 to 1618. It says:
"At the same time a perfectly distinct current of ideas
was originated by the Arabian mysticism of Paracelus and
Rosenkreuz; which, after being popularized on the con-
tinent, was preached to the people of England, by Robert
Fludd, in his Tractatus Theologica-Philosophicus. Works
like Bacon's New Atlantis * * * fostered the idea of
a new humanitarian society, and at the same time sug-
gested the adoption of ancient symbols of fellowship."
It is a curious fact that Bacon's work "The New At-
lantis," was adopted, word for word, by the Rosicrucians,
and made one of their documents, without any acknowl-
edgement that it came from the brain of Sir Francis.
Whether this was a mere case of literary theft ; or whether
it was really prepared, in the first instance, for the use
of the mysterious society, it is difficult to tell. The
"Island of the New Atlantis" became "the land of the
Rosicrucians."
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 345
It is strange if John Heydon boldly appropriated a
book likely to be so well known as Bacon's "New Atlan-
tis," as a Rosicrucian document, without some warrant
in its history. The Encyclopaedia Britannica perceives
that the teachings of the "New. Atlantis" are kindred to
the avowed purposes of the Rosicrucian society.
Trajano Boccalini, an Italian, was the author of Rag-
guagli di Parnasso. This contained, in its 78th argu-
ment, the original of the first Rosicrucian document, pub-
lished in Germany, in 1614, a pamphlet entitled "Die Re-
formation der Ganzen Weiten Welt"
In* 1704 it was published, in an English translation;
and in this edition Sir Francis Bacon is named as the
Secretary of the Commission, appointed by Apollo to se-
cure a general reformation of the world! He made a
speech, and, in accordance with his suggestions, the rot-
ten and corrupt age was brought before the learned men
of the world for examination. (See L. Biddulph. Ba-
coniana, April, 1899, p. 87.)
W. F. C. Wigston, (Journal Bacon Society, June, 1889,
p. 182), claims that Francis Bacon "was the founder of
the Rosicrucians, or, at least, at its head in England."
He calls attention to the fact that Robert Burton, in that
enigmatical book, "The Anatomy of Melancholy," (by
many attributed to Bacon), groups together "The Rosie
Cross men" and the "New Atlantis" of Bacon. He adds :
— "a foot note couples the name of Bacon with that of
Andreas," (the reputed founder of the Rosie-cross so-
ciety), thus : —
"John Valent Andreas, Lord Verulam."
"There is not even a full stop," he adds, "between the
346 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
two names, but they are left as if they were masks for
each other."
Burton speaks of the founder of Rosicrucianism as
alive in 1621, and describes him, in words that exactly fit
Bacon, as "the renewer of all arts and sciences."
But let us return to the Encyclopaedia Britannica. It
says :
"The reconstruction of London after the fire, the build-
ing of St. Paul's, and the patronage of Sir Christopher
Wren, kept up the interest in the movement ; and at last
a formal resolution was passed that the masonic privil-
eges should be no longer confined to operative masons."
This would indicate that Freemasonry was born in Eng-
land ; and spread thence to France in 1725, and within
the next ten years to Holland, Spain, Italy, Russia, Scot-
land, Ireland and Germany.
The American Cyclopaedia, Vol. VII, p. 471, refers to
the initiation of the English antiquary, Elias Ashmole,
into the Masonic order, in 1646, twenty years after Ba-
con's death. Ashmole stated, in his diary, that the sym-
bols and signs were borrowed partly from the knights-
templars and "partly from the Rosicrucians."
We thus find the transition from operative to specu-
lative Masonry dating back to Rosicrucian times ; and to
the days when some mysterious agency, presumably a
society, was republishing, at large cost, the great Shake-
speare Folio of 1623. In 1632 the second edition was put
forth; in 1646 Ashmole, who seems to have been familiar
with the Rosicrucian Society, was made a Mason ; and
in 1664 the third edition of the Folio was printed.
When the child is born the umbilical cord remains to
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 347
show whence it was derived. The umbilical cord which
connects Freemasonry with the Rosicrucian Society is
"the Rose-Cross degree/' the highest pinnacle of Free-
masonry; with its "sovereign princes of Rose-Croix;" and
its ''princes of "Rose-Croix de Heroden."
Waite tells us, (The Real History of the Rosicrucians,
page 405), that "the origin of the Rose-cross degree is
involved in the most profound mystery. Its foundation
has been attributed to Johann Valentin Andreas, who is
supposed to have written most of the Roscrucian mani-
festoes."
Prof. Buhle, a high authority upon these subjects, af-
firms that "Freemasonry is neither more nor less than
Rosicrucianism, as modified by those who transplanted it
into England."
I have a book, ready for the Press, entitled "Ben Jon-
son's Cipher," the object of which is to show that there
is a Baconian cipher in the plays attributed to Ben Jon-
son; and in Jonson's play of "The Staple of News" we
find two references to the Rosie-Cross Society, as fol-
lows :
"Is by the brotherhood of the Rosie-cross,
Produced unto perfection." III. I.
And again :
"He has nature in a pot, 'bove all the chymists,
Or airy brethren of the Rosie-cross" IV. I.
When we see two societies, with kindred purposes and
vast philanthropic schemes, for the good of mankind, one
the Rosicrucian association, and the other the order of
Free-Masons; the first apparently disappearing from the
348 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
theatre of the world at the very hour when the other is
born; and when we find the highest branch of one of
these societies bearing the very name of the other; we
may fairly conclude that both are parts of one continu-
ous whole.
If it be objected that it is impossible that the plans and
purposes of the Rosicrucians could be continued down
through the three centuries which have elapsed
since we know it to have been in existence, it
is sufficient to point to the fact that Free-Ma-
sonry has endured for an equally long period
of time, as an open association, with millions of
members, taking an active part in the affairs of the world.
It is not necessary to believe that every Free-Mason
in the world is in possession of the secrets of Rosicru-
cianism. It is sufficient if "the sovereign princes of Rose-
Croix," and the "princes of Rose-Croix de Heroden,"
dwelling in secrecy on the pinnacle of the inner temple
of Freemasonry, possess certain great secrets, which are
transmitted from age to age, by the simple process of
each prince selecting his successor, before he dies. In-
deed the absolute truth may be known to but half a dozen
persons at any one time. Such a selected succession
might endure to the end of time; much more for three
hundred or five hundred years.
Then to this inner circle, of great and faithful men, the
vast membership of millions, in the other branches of
Free-Masonry, would be but the arms and limbs of the
order, to be set in motion whenever necessity might arise.
They would perform an important part in preserving the
secrets of the society, while in fact they would know little
or nothing of what they were.
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 349
Without going into the question whether secret so-
cieties should or should not exist in a free state; or how
far their establishment was justified by ancient persecu-
tions and oppressions, (when free thought and free speech
were too often accounted treason) ; it is only fair to say
that the purposes of Free-Masonry are undoubtedly kin-
dred to those of the Rosicrucians, and to the principles
and plans of Francis Bacon. They are pre-eminently a
charitable body. They preach "the fatherhood of God
and the brotherhood of man." They teach mercy to the
poor and wretched ; charity to the widow and the father-
less ; and there can be no doubt, whatever may be justly
urged against them, that they have done an incalculable
amount of good all over the world.
If the spirit of Francis Bacon lives in any human or-
ganization today, it seems to me it would be content to
dwell in such a society, — such a vast organized charity;
always on the side of liberty ; and hostile to ignorance and
tyranny.
We can conceive of an association, something akin to
our own Smithsonian Institute, moving silently and se-
cretly down the ages; here helping the publication of a
book, which otherwise might not see the light; there di-
recting the movement of events, so that mankind would
be more free and happy; a benevolent "God in the ma-
chine," manifested only by the good works thrown up
along his path. Such may be the Rosicrusian Society, if
it still exists.
But is there evidence that any such agency has been
at work, about Francis Bacon's affairs, since his death?
I have already called attention to the fact, (first ob-
served by William Henry Smith of England), that the
350 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
first three Folios of the Shakespeare Plays are exactly
alike in pagination, arrangement of type, bracketings and
hyphenations; and, even what we would regard as typo-
graphical errors. In each the same words begin and end
every page of the three great volumes of 1000 pages each.
And yet it is evident they were not printed from the
same type, and there was no stereotyping in that age.
They appeared in 1623, 1632 and 1664. (See page 112
ante. )
If a society was started to perpetuate the cipher story,
and, if, as we know, it continued to exist for forty-one
years, why should it die then? Would not the secret be-
come more valuable with every year that it was pre-
served ?
Mrs. Henry Pott, the learned author of "Francis Bacon
and His Secret Society/' is quite sure that the Rosicrucian
association is still in existence. She says, (page 23) :
"When experience shows that Freemasonry exists exer-
cising the same functions, rules and system, as it did near-
ly three hundred years ago, reason tells us that what is a
fact concerning the lower grades of a society is likely to
be equally a fact concerning the upper grades of the same
society ; and when we see the Freemasons exhibiting and
proclaiming themselves, in their meetings, dresses, and
ceremonials, much as they did at their first institution,
we find it contrary to common sense to maintain that the
retiring and silent Rosicrucians, who from the first en-
forced concealment and silence, cannot now be in existence
because they are not seen or generally recognized."
There are certainly many facts which show that some
society has continued to exist during the last two or three
centuries which has been supervising the correspondence
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 351
of Francis Bacon and cutting out or purloining anything
which might throw light upon the secrets of his career.
In Speckling' s Life and Letters of Bacon, Vol. 2, page
3, we find reference to a box of Bacon's papers, which, in
1682, came to Dr. Tenison, from "the executor of the
executor of Sir Thomas Mewtys," and which disappeared
at some time, subsequently to 1749. Spedding refers to it
as proving "the existence at that time of writings of Ba-
con's which are not now to be found." Archbishop Her-
ring placed them in the Lambeth Library in that year,
1749.
Who carried them off from that safe depository, and
why have they never since seen the light? If they had
been purloined by a mere lover of curios, would they not,
at his death, have found their way back to Lambeth Li-
brary, or to the British Museum ? Only a society of some
kind could have kept them secreted for 150 years.
Spedding further says, Vol. VII, p. 589 ;
"If my conjecture be correct, it follows that there were
then in that box, besides those which are still extant at
Lambeth or elsewhere, a gt>od many which are not now
to be found ; and as there is nothing on the face of the
matter to distinguish these from the rest, or suggest any
cause for their disappearance, it is possible that they are
still in existence and may yet be discovered. In most
cases I have quoted the description of each of these miss-
ing letters in the place where the letter itself would have
come in. But for explorers who may light upon any of
them by chance, it will be convenient to have the descrip-
tions collected together, that they may be more readily re-
ferred to. * * * And in recommending the list to the
352 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
attention of explorers or possessors of manuscript col-
lections, I would only remind them that all the letters or
papers described in it must, in my opinion, have been ex-
tant and in the hands of Dr. Tenison as late as December,
1682."
The italics are Spedding's.
Mrs. Pott says, ("Francis Bacon and his Secret Soci-
ety," page 49) :
"There is a mystery about Sir Tobie Mathew's collec-
tion of letters to and from Bacon. These letters are, as
a rule, not only without a date, but likewise they appear
to have been 'stripped of all particulars that might serve
to fit the occasion' for which they were penned ; some-
times, even, the person to whom they were addressed."
Mrs. Pott refers (p. 46, ibid), to some French verses,
(no. 175), among the "Tenison manuscripts," at Lambeth
Palace, London, addressed to Anthony Bacon, the brother
of Francis, and referring to him as a poet, "the flower of
Englishmen, the honor of the nine Muses;" and shows
that this document is not included in the printed catalogue.
Nos. 174 and 176 are duly registered, but 175, — which
connected one of the Bacon family with the subject of
poetry, — is omitted! Mrs. Pott asks "could this be acci-
dental?"
On the same page, she states that in the Harleian MSS.
"Bacon's "Promus of Formularies and Elegancies," is num-
bered in the collection but omitted from the catalogue!
And yet this document is now attracting the attention of
the scholars of the whole world.
Mrs. Pott also says, (page 44, ibid) :
"There are upwards of sixty letters from Anthony Stau-
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 358
den to Anthony Bacon, previous to the one from which
Spedding extracts his first quotation ; and there are other
correspondents whose letters will, undoubtedly, at some
future date, be held of great value and interest. The
drift of these letters must have been understood by the
compilers of the printed catalogue of the Tenison manu-
scripts, and by biographers who have quoted from some
of the letters. What satisfactory reason can be given for
the fact that a hint of the existence of this correspondence
is here and there given, and letters are published which
bear directly upon politics or the passing history of the
day, but that the true purport of the collective corres-
pondence is everywhere concealed? For these letters,
taken collectively, have a distinct and harmonious aim
and drift. They teach us that Francis Bacon was the
recognized head of a secret society, bound together to ad-
vance learning and to uphold religion, and that Anthony
Bacon was his brother's propagandist and corresponding
manager on the continent."
I quote again from the same author, (page 19, ibid) :
"Such an answer has hitherto been withheld, and it
cannot be thought unreasonable if, for the present, we
continue in the faith that the statements and theories here
set forth are approximately correct. When those who
have it in their power absolutely to confirm or refute our
observations will do neither the one nor the other ; when
published books are found invariably to stop short at the
point where full information is required, and which must
be in the possession of those who, having written up to
that point, know so well where to stop and what to omit,
then we are assured that the questions remain unanswered,
23
354 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
the books incomplete, because those who have in their
possession the information which we need are bound by
vows to withhold it. In Freemason's language, they
'cannot tell' — an expression which recurs with remark-
able frequency in correspondence on these subjects, 'and
which is judicially or graciously varied and paraphrased :
'I regret to be unable to give you the information you
seek/ — 'I am sorry that I can tell you nothing which' will
assist your researches/ — 'These inquiries are most inter-
esting— I wish it were in my power to help you/ etc. In
vain have we endeavored to extract the answer, 7 do not
know.' Such a phrase does not seem to exist amongst the
formulae of Freemason or Rosicrucian language."
Why were expensive photo-lithographic copies of the
Folio of 1623, put forth a few years ago? It could not
have been for profit, for we are told that but one hundred
copies of each edition were printed. Was it through the
same influence which gave us the Folios of 1623, 1632 and
1664, before the days of photography and lithography?
Waite, in his book, ("The Real History of the Rosi-
crucians, p. 408), has a chapter tending to show that a
Rosicrucian Society was alive, in the Island of Mauritius,
on the I2th of September, 1794; and that a pseudo-society
existed in England in 1836; and that a "Rosicrucian So-
ciety of England," now exists in that country. No one
can be a member who has not been previously initiated
into Freemasonry. Waite seems to doubt whether any
connection can be established between these modern soci-
eties and the ancient organization. Mrs. Pott has had
correspondence recently which tends to show that the
Rosie-cross association is still in existence in Germany.
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 355
And why, I would ask, has the discussion of the theory
that Francis Bacon was the real author of the so-called
Shakespeare Plays, provoked such terribly malignant op-
position ?
Why was Delia Bacon, nearly fifty years ago, persecuted
into her grave, through a mad house, by the gallant gen-
tlemen of that era, for intimating that Francis Bacon
wrote the Shakespeare Plays ? Would any other literary
controversy have elicited such dreadful bitterness?
The authorship of the books of the New Testament, —
the most sacred writings known to the Christian world, —
has been questioned; and the accepted writers pushed
aside ; yet no man* has ever denounced any of those com-
mentators as lunatics or knaves, or scoundrels ; or suggest-
ed that they were fit subjects for an insane asylum.
As Hamlet says : "'S'blood, there is something in this
more than natural, if philosophy could find it out."
Is the play-actor of Stratford, who began his recorded
career with one drunken spree, and ended it with another ;
and of whom not a single creditable act or word, or trait
is preserved, even by tradition, more sacred than Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John, and the whole Christian dispen-
sation ?
Who is it that is at work stirring up all this passion and
prejudice, — this tearing of men and women to pieces be-
cause they dare to quietly discuss a not unreasonable lit-
erary hypothesis ?
Mr. Gladstone said :
"Considering what Bacon was, I have always regarded
the discussion as one perfectly serious and to be respect-
ed/'
356 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
I have already quoted the curt expression of John
Bright, that "any man who thinks Shakspere wrote Lear
and Hamlet is a fool."
In William D. O'Connor's charming little book, "Mr.
Donnelly's Reviewers" we find the following lines, (page
80):
"We need not allude to the great number of intellec-
tual and accomplished men and women, in private life,
who accept this theory. We need not even mention the
formal advocates, such as Delia Bacon, with her noble
clouded ideality, struck through with such lightnings of
insight as seldom make splendid any ftrain; nor Judge
Holmes, with his solid learning and sterling sense, whose
book a Tribune reviewer had once to brassily falsify be-
fore he could even try to ans\ver it ; nor even Mrs. Pott,
whose marvelous power of patient research, equal in itself
to genius, is coupled with the most delicate and unerring
perception. But there is Leconte de Lisle, incomparable
but for Victor Hugo, among the French poets, who has
the dazzling honor of being the successor to Victor Hugo's
chair in the French Academy, and he has declared un-
equivocally against the Shakespeareans. There is Dr.
Kitno Fisher, of Heidelberg, illustrious now above the
modern German philosophers, as the expounder of Kant,
who, not long since, was announced to lecture in support
of the Baconian theory. There is James Nasmyth, the
broad-brained Scotchman, famous as an astronomer, the
inventor of the steam pile-driver, the steam hammer, im-
proved ordnance, telescopes, what not, whose practical
mind saw the same truth. There is Lord Palmerston, the
embodiment of the strong British common sense, and he,
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 357
too, was a Baconian. There is Sir Patrick Colquhoun,
one of the most eminent of English publicists, who has
added his name to the Baconian roster by his lecture, a
couple of years since, before the Royal Society of Litera-
ture in London. There, as said already, is Charlotte Cush-
man, the powerful actress, whom the stage and the play-
goer will long remember. There is General Butler, (O
rare Ben Butler!), whose full mental worth will not be
known until some publisher has the wit to urge him to
collect into a volume his trenchant literary essays, such
as his cogent defense of the slandered Byron. And there,
too, to go no further, is that justice of our Supreme
Bench, who most in mind resembles Marshall, and who
long since gave in his adhesion, on judicial grounds, to
the cause of Bacon."
When I was in England in 1888, I had the pleasure of
participating in a debate, before the ''Union" of Cam-
bridge University, with some of the brightest young men,
(not boys) of England, Ireland, Scotland and Australia,
upon the question : "Did Francis Bacon write the Shake-
speare Plays ?" There were five hundred students in the
hall, and custom required that, as they passed out, at the
close of the debate, each should register his vote, yea or
nay, on the question. Of the 500 only 120 voted in favor
of Shakespeare's claims ; 101 voted that Bacon wrote the
Plays ; and nearly 300 were so bewildered that they re-
fused to vote at all !
And yet, despite this striking result, in the very heart
of England's learning and culture; and the long list of
great names of converts, given by Mr. O'Connor, the
public mind is assured that the Baconian theory is akin
358 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
to insanity, if it does not actually deserve the state prison !
Surely there must be some malign and secret influence
at work, behind the curtain, to thus attack, with blud-
geons and blunderbusses, a belief endorsed by some of the
brightest intellects of the old and new world.
And now I would touch upon some matters which I do
not put forth as essentially a part of this book, for I have
not complete faith in some of the statements made ; but I
give them as contemporary gossip, which may throw some
light upon the questions at issue.
It seems that a threatening letter has been written, by
some anonymous party, to a prominent English writer,
Mrs. Henry Pott, of London, author of "Bacon's Promus,"
to intimidate her from seeking farther to show that Free-
masonry had something to do with the suppression of
facts relative to Bacon's authorship of the Plays. This
letter may be the work of an industrious "crank," (and
such abound everywhere) ; or it may be part of a con-
spiracy, of "the Rosie-Cross degree," — or a select circle
within it, — to postpone all discussion of the subject until
the time comes, appointed by Bacon, for the revelation of
the tremendous secret. One could not much blame them,
if such a trust had been placed in their hands, for striving
to hold back all inquiry until the time fixed by their great
leader, had arrived. But this enlightened age will not
endure any middle-age methods of trampling out the truth
in blood ---if any such are contemplated.
Mr. William Henry Burr, of Washington, D. C., an
old friend, original thinker and eminent writer, sent me
a letter, dated June 2ist, 1899, in which he enclosed a let-
ter, from which I make the following extracts :
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 359
Postmarked "Westfield," no state given.
"Providence, R. I., June 27th, 1898.
"Sir : — I am writing you from a wrong address, under
an assumed name and in a feigned hand.
"Under similarly feigned hand, name and address, I
lately wrote Mrs. Henry Pott, and to the same effect that
I now write you.
"The object I have in doing this is to say to you, as I did
to Mrs. Pott, that she is in danger on account of several
things she has said in 'Baconiana/ about Freemasons,
and, as I myself am a Freemason, I would run (and am
running) a risk of my life in warning her.
"The fact is that what Mrs. Pott has said about Free-
masonry has attracted attention in the Fraternity and had
better be discontinued.
If Francis Bacon was a Rosicrucian — which was the
earlier name of Freemasonry — he broke the great rule of
the order when, in his writings, he endeavored to spread
e'xoterically, and over all mankind, by his heavier works,
as well as his works of recreation, (which he recalled
pleasantly as his works of the alphabet, his pastime; his
very A B C), the learning which the Order had deter-
mined and ordained should be secret, like the Eleusinian
mysteries of old. It was in revenge for this infraction
that the Order compassed his ruin. * * *
As you have been long known to me, Mr. Burr, as a
firm and unwavering advocate of the Baconian truth, I
am writing you this. At first I had intended telling it
to Mrs. Pott. But I only hinted at it, confining myself to
warning her not to say anything in print about Freema-
sonry. She may be suspected of knowing, (even if she
does not know), more than the Fraternity thinks she
360 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
ought to know. And I need not say more, especially as
you may be a Freemason yourself.
Respectfully yours,
JOHN WARREN BROWN."
It is evident that this letter was intended, not only
to threaten Mrs. Pott, but Mr. Burr as well ; and the talk
about "risk of life" is very suggestive. But I am re-
luctant to believe that Freemasonry or Rosicrucianism
would resort to any such courses.
Mr. Burr believes he has found evidence to show that
Bacon did not die in 1626. He has written a pamphlet,
to prove that he, (Bacon), withdrew from the world in
that year, and lived, as a recluse, for fourteen years long-
er; and he quotes the Earl of Verulam to show that his
body, despite his will, was never buried at St. Michael's,
St. Albans, and is not there now. The suggestion is
made, (as stated in the foregoing letter), that Bacon was
driven into exile, in 1626, by the Rosicrucians, for violat-
ing their rules.
While all this will seem incredible and unreasonable
to the general public, it may be conceded that there is
something mysterious about the death and burial of the
great man. It is said no two accounts of those events
agree.
In conclusion I would say that I anticipate that a con-
certed attempt will be made, here and in England, either
to ignore this book altogether, or to drown it in oceans of
insult and1 abuse.
But the truth
"Will rise,
Though all the earth o'erwhelm it to men's eyes."
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 361
CHAPTER XXXI.
Shakspere's Grave.
There is a curious fact connected with the burial of
Shakspere.
We referred to it in 'The Great Cryptogram/' page 888,
as follows :
''There has been found recently, (1884, in the Bodleian
Library,) an old letter from a certain William Hall, a
Queen's College man, who took his B. A. degree in Oc-
tober. 1694, to Edward Thwaites, of Queen's College, a
well-known Anglo-Saxon scholar. Hallowell Phillips
pronounces the letter genuine, and has printed it for
private circulation, with a preface, in which he shows that
it was probably written in December, 1694, seventy-eight
years after Shakespere's death. Mr. Hall was visiting
Stratford, and wrote to his 'dear Neddy.' He quotes the
famous lines on the tombstone, and adds: 'The little
learning these verses contain would be a very strong
argument of the want of it in the autnor.' He says that
Shakespere ordered these four lines to be cut on his tomb-
stone during his life-time, and that he did so because he
feared his bones might some day be removed; and he
further says that they buried him 'full seventeen feet deep
— deep enough to secure him !' ':
362 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
Sir Thomas Bodley, the founder of the famous Bodleian
Library, was born in 1544, and died in 1612. He and his
successors accumulated thousands of curious documents.
There seems to be no reason to doubt the truth of the
statement made by Hall. He must have derived his in-
formation from common report in Stratford, as he was
himself simply a traveler visiting the town.
Graves are not usually made deeper than six feet, as
that is about the limit from which the grave-digger can
throw the earth to the surface.
To make a grave seventeen feet deep would require the
same appliances which are used in digging a well — •
such as rope, windlass, buckets, etc. A grave seventeen
feet deep would be an unprecedented and extraordinary
affair. It would be literally burying the corpse in a
well.
Ben Jonson, who was one of Bacon's "good pennes;"
'and, (as his interview with Drummond of Hawthornden
shows) lived. in his house and was his friend; and who,
in his "Discoveries" (1640), applied to Bacon the same
expressions he had, in the introductory verses to the
Shakespeare Folio of 1623, applied to Shakespeare; and
who declared, in effect, that Bacon was a "concealed poet,"
by saying he had "filled up all numbers," which meant
that he had made all kinds of poetical compositions ; Jon-
son — we say — was probably present at Shakspere's
funeral.
We read in the Diary of the Rev. John Ward, Vicar of
Stratford, in 1662:
"Shakespeare, Drayton and Ben Jonson had a merrie
meeting, and it seems, drank too hard, for Shakespeare
died of a feavour there contracted/-'
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 363
Why were Drayton and Ben Jonson at Shakespere's
home at the time of his death ? Stratford was then three
days' journey from London.
Was it known in London that the actor's health was
failing, and that his demise was not far off? Did Bacon
send them there?
Was it to see that nothing was said or done by Shaks-
pere, in his last moments, that would reveal or expose the
great secret?
Was it at Ben Jonson's request, on behalf of Bacon,
that Shakspere was buried seventeen feet deep?
Did Ben Jonson secretly place in the coffin, under the
body of the dead actor, a bottle, or water-tight casket,
which contained a parchment, covered with "the wax of
watch-candles," revealing Bacon's authorship; and sta-
ting where the original manuscripts of the Plays, and a
world of other matters, could be found?
And why, over this seventeen-feet-deep hole was a
stone placed, invoking curses upon any one who would
remove the stone or disturb the body?
Curses meant a good deal more in that superstitious
age than they do now. We have seen that this imprecation,
supposed to have been uttered by the dead man, was so
terrifying, that, although the actor's wife and daughter
would have been glad to have been buried with him.
they did not dare to face that threat.
"Blest be the man that spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."
It seems unquestionable that there must have been some
reason for digging that grave seventeen feet deep, and
364- THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
capping it with a warning to stand back and leave it alone.
And when we find that that stone not only uttered that
threat, but, in Francis Bacon's bi-literal cipher, declared
that he, Francis Bacon, was the real author of the Greene,
Marlowe and Shakespeare Plays, we put this, that and the
other together, and say : "There is something hidden
here, that was not to be revealed until after a certain
number of years had passed."
Because if there had been no such threat on the grave-
stone, and if the body had been interred at the ordinary
depth, then when the grave chanced to be subsequently
opened, to bury any of his family or posterity, the casket
might be found, like the papers of Numa Pompilius ; and
the great secret would have been revealed before the
time prescribed by Francis Bacon.
So that the threat, above, and the seventeen-feet-deep
hole below, were both necessary and co-related parts for
the preservation of the secret ; and Ben Jonson was there
to see that it was preserved.
In 1888, at the time of the publication of "The Great
Cryptogram," there was considerable excitment in Eng-
land over the question of the authorship of the Plays ; and
it was proposed by many that the grave in the church at
Stratford should be opened, if for no other purpose than
to take a cast of the skull, or of so much of it as remained,
to see whether or not it indicated an intellectual cranial
development.
But thereupon a concerted uproar of protests arose
against "desecrating the remains of the illustrious poet !"
The worms had devoured his flesh, and the animalcule
were eating away the animal tissue that held the mineral
part of the bones together, and reducing the whole thing
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 365
to nothingness ; but it would be a horrible desecration —
they said — to permit the most intellectual age in the
world's history to reverently view the relics of the dead
actor, for the increase of knowledge; and to help settle
a great vexed question, in which all mankind was inter-
ested.
Was this uproar caused by those who knew that in the
grave was that which would have terminated forever
the Bacon-Shakespeare controversy?
Will another such uproar follow the publication of this
book, and any proposition to open that grave?
Will the successors of the Rosicrucian Society stand
guard over it with all the weapons of calumny, abuse
and denunciation?
And yet why should they ?
Bacon simply postponed the revelation of his great
secret until such time as the age would give it fair treat-
ment and an impartial hearing. Is not that age here now ?
Will anything be gained by deferring it a few years, or
a century or two, longer? Who can foresee what revolu-
tions may fall upon and destroy civilization in the ages
that are near at hand?
In all the past, in Atlantean, Assyrian, Egyptian,
Grecian, and Roman history, God's most splendid develop-
ments of culture have, as they approached their culmin-
ation, been overvvhelmned by gigantic catastrophes, physi-
cal or social ; and man has been cast back into semi-bar-
barism.
Our reasoning may be fallacious; and there may be
nothing in Shakspere's grave but dust and ashes ; but at
least it will cost little of time or means to make the in-
vestigation.
366 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
While this great, peaceful age is at its best, the world
is entitled to know the truth, as to all things. Error
assists only evil. In light is safety.
"Since God is light;
And never but in unapproached light,
Dwelt since eternity."
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 367
CHAPTER XXXII.
The Church of St. Michael, at St. Albans.
"My name be buried where my body is," said Bacon in
the Sonnets.
In his will he says :
"For my burial, I desire it may be in St. Michael's
church, near St. Alban's ; there was my mother buried,
and it is the parish church of my mansion house of
Gorhambury, and it is the only Christian church within
the walls of old Verulam."
How many reasons he gives. How many reasons he
gave for publishmg the bi-literal cipher in the De
Augmentis !
And he adds :
"For my name and memory, I leave it to men's charita-
ble speeches, and to foreign nations, and the next ages."
He had written, in the first draft of the will : "And to
my own countrymen after some time be passed.'' But
fearing that this looked too clearly to a coming revelation,
"When wasteful wars should statues overturn," he struck
it out.
His name — his record — was to be buried where his
body was ; and lest a long subsequent age should be in
doubt where his place of burial was he put it in his will.
368 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
He made the excuse, "there was my mother buried," but
his father was buried at "St. Pauls." Why was his wife
not buried near her husband? He was the most distin-
guished member of his family. He had been Lord Keeper
of the Great Seal, during the first twenty years of Eliza-
beth's reign. He was a very great man. Why this
separation of the family?
Was there any place in or about the church where any
considerable deposit of papers could be secreted?
We read in "Baconiana" (London), October, 1897:
"During the recent excavations at St. Michael's, the
workmen have discovered, seven feet below the present
ground level, a line of solid Roman masonry, which runs
at an angle of 45° up to the church, where the west wall
of the north aisle meets the nave. For this late informa-
tion we must thank the editor of 'Middlesex and Hert's
Notes and Queries,' April, 1897."
In a work written by Cussans, in 1881, we read :
"There is strong reason for believing that the present
church, standing as it does within the walls of ancient
Vertilam, occupies the site of a heathen temple. The
church is in the midst of extensive buildings, for though
the churchyard has been used for centuries, there are
many parts, on all sides of the church, where it is almost
impossible to dig a grave, by reason of the solid masonry
beneath the surface!"
Whether this masonry ("and broils root out the work
of masonry,") is part of the walls and temples of the
ancient Roman city of Verulam; or whether it is stone-
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 369
work placed there by the direction of Lord Bacon himself,
matters little. It would furnish ample room, in its sub-
terranean chambers, for the deposit of all the papers neces-
sary for the revelation of the secret history of his era.
The scholarly magician, Prospero, in the Tempest
(V. I.) says:
"But this rough magic
I here abjure; and, when I have required
Some heavenly music, (which even now I do,)
To work mine end upon their senses, that
This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff,
Bury it certain fathoms in the earth,
And deeper than did ever plummet sound,
I'll drown my book" ,
'These seem to be the last words of the great philoso-
pher, when — reaching power in the state, and possessed
of ample wealth — he bade farewell to the attractions of
poetry and the drama, and devoted himself to state-
craft— "the glory of God and the relief of man's estate."
Prospero says :
"My dukedom since you have given me again,
I will requite you with as good a thing;
At least bring forth a wonder, to content ye,
As much as me my dukedom."
Was the "wonder" his wonderful philosophical works?
While I was in England — in 1888 — I made repeated
visits to St. Michael's Church. I took with me a pocket
compass and I found that while the magnetic needle —
within the churchyard, but some distance from the church
—pointed correctly to the north ; inside the church it was
24
370 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
deflected to the west and pointed directly to Lord Bacon's
monument. I concluded that there might be beneath the
church a large amount of iron, such as great chests of
that metal.
This monument to Lord Bacon states that it was
erected by Sir Thomas Meautys, his earnest friend and
private secretary, who survived him, and inherited his
possessions as cousin and next heir. He lies buried at the
foot of Lord Bacon's statue; like a faithful watch-dog
guarding his master until he awakens. Any one who will
visit the church will see that the whole of the inscription
on the stone, over his grave, has been chipped out by
a chisel, so that only his name is left. It is not worn out
evenly by the feet of visitors, but great holes are cut in
the stone.'
Did it contain a cipher? Did some one know that
fact, and, therefore, obliterated the whole inscription?
Bacon, in his last will, left large gifts to his wife, and
afterwards "utterly revoked them," as he said, for "just
and good causes," and left her to her legal rights. Not
long after his death she married her "gentleman-usher,"
and "the comments of contemporary satirists" gave coun-
tenance to scandal. (Spedding L. & L. VII, 538.)
What was the cause of a hostility bitter enough to
deface the grave-stone of a dead man ?
Is it another illustration of the truth that "hell has no
fury like a woman scorned."
The sexton of the church, an old man, told me that
soon after the beginning of this century, when his prede-
cessor entered the church one morning, he found that the
alabaster statue of Sir Francis had been taken down from
its pedestal and lay on the floor, with one hand broken
THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER. 371
off. He pointed out the place where the hand had been
subsequently restored and cemented to the arm. He said
they had to employ derricks and a large force of
laborers to get the heavy statue back to its place.
No one, he remarked, could imagine any reason for the
overthrow of the image, as it was too heavy to carry away,
and too well known to be stolen.
Had a tradition descended among the posterity of some
of the workmen employed by Bacon, that a treasure of
some kind was in or about or near the monument, and
were those who took down the statue looking for it?
Were they unwilling to wait until "wasteful wars" should
overthrow it, and "broils root out the work of masonry."
Or was there a written declaration inside the statue,
and did some society, which knew of it, overturn the
statue and get possession of it, lest it should fall into ad-
verse hands ?
How did the dark-colored stone, set in the face of the
pedestal, come to be broken into two pieces, afterwards re-
paired by cement?
Was this farther proof of a search?
Mrs. Henry Pott told me that, among the descendants
of Sir John Davies, the poet, and friend of Bacon — to
whom Bacon wrote, in a letter yet extant — "be^good to
all concealed poets," — a traditionary belief had always ex-
isted that Shakespere was not the author of the plays
which bear his name!
This discussion has progressed too far for any man,
or set of men, or society, or brotherhood, to arrest it. It
must go on until all the truth is known. The world has it
in charge.
372 THE PRESENT CUSTODIANS OF THE CIPHER.
In the Latin inscription on Lord Bacon's monument
occur these strange words :
"Let compounds be dissolved."
There is nothing to explain them.
Do they mean that the time must come when all masks
shall fall, and there shall stand forth, before the world,
singular and luminous, the figure of the grandest of the
sons of men — the first of poets and the foremost of
philosophers— FRANCIS BACON?
THE END.
r* j.
Connelly, Ignatius
The cipher in the plays,
and on the tombstone
PR
29
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